


Scars Make Company

by icaruswithwingsofwater



Category: Soul Eater
Genre: Action, Action & Romance, Action/Adventure, Angst, Blood and Violence, F/F, F/M, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, M/M, Romance, Slow Burn, Violence
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-10-18
Updated: 2018-12-13
Packaged: 2019-08-03 19:26:13
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 5
Words: 27,000
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16332023
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/icaruswithwingsofwater/pseuds/icaruswithwingsofwater
Summary: After the Battle of Insanity things in Death City have finally calmed down. Or have they? Out of the blue two new members arrive on the request of Lord Death himself to help out the D.W.M.A.  and the students within it. But something is different about these two new members so much that they spark the interest of a particular scientist. The three form a peculiar bond as the new members begin settling into Death City but something is looming overhead in the distance. Something growing louder and louder.





	1. The Doubled Souled Weapon and Meister of Mixed Means - The D.W.M.A has two new members?

**Author's Note:**

> Hi everyone! Welcome to my first OC fic! I hope you all enjoy it. I will be updating either every two weeks or once a month depending on school and my other projects. If you have any questions or comments let me know.
> 
> You can find me on Tumblr at icaruswithwingsofwater
> 
> }{
> 
> This story takes place mainly after where the anime left off but has some elements of the manga mixed in.

**Wednesday, September 8th**

**10:48 A.M.**

 

The clanging of the bells of Death Weapon Meister Academy signaled the end of second period. Soul Eater sighed peacefully, relaxing back into his chair and resting his feet up on his desk.

"Finally," he said with a grin, sharp teeth showing. "I didn't think that class would ever end!"

"You should pay more attention, Soul!" his partner Maka Albarn scolded as she reappeared from behind one of her precious books. "Your grades are terrible right now and I can only do so much."

"Don't get your panties in a bunch," he returned with a yawn. "I've got it all figured out."

"I doubt it," Liz Thompson said from behind them, filing her nails.

"Ha ha ha! Yeah, you've never passed a class!" her sister Patty squealed next to her.

"You two haven't either!" Soul grunted, his red eyes narrowing at them.

"However, at least they try, unlike you I'm afraid . . .” Death the Kid pointed out as he doodled eights on a spare piece of paper.

"What are you all fighting about?" a bouncy, blue-haired kid demanded from nearby. "Who cares about grades when you're as big a star as I am?"  

 "Black Star, you shouldn't say that," Tsubaki chided at his side. "You need to improve as well!"

"Yeah right! HA HA HA!"

Several rows down Maka rolled her eyes at her classmates. Shooting a glance at Crona, who was quietly observing the scene, she noticed they seemed a bit anxious today. Even Ragnarok was calm . . .

"Hey, Crona," the blonde addressed carefully, lightly touching their slender arm, "everything okay?"

Crona looked up startled, their violet eyes shifting in a nervous fashion like normal. Just as they were about to answer the doors of the classroom creaked open and a large blue head poked inside.

"Maka, Black Star, Kid, and Crona!" Sid called out, grabbing the students attention. "Lord Death wants to see you in the Dead Room!"

"Yes, sir! Coming," Maka said as she nodded quickly.

 _What does Lord Death want with us now?_ she wondered confused.

"Oh and bring your weapon partners with you too!" Sid added in a rush before disappearing once again.

"You can just say our names!" Soul shouted after him annoyed as he stood up, his hands resting casually behind his head.

"Just chill out," Maka chided giving him a crack on the head with a particularly large book. "Sid sounded in a hurry. This must be really important."

"Did your father say anything about this?" Tsubaki asked Kid as the group made their way down the long corridors.

"No," Kid said with a frown, his golden eyes narrowed in thought. "He didn't tell me anything was happening today."

"Ooh! I love surprises!" Patty giggled, skipping alongside Crona and her sister.

"I don't . . ." Liz said nervously.

"Relax dorks," Soul groaned as they reached the door of the Dead Room, "it's probably nothing."

"Oh good! You're here!" Lord Death said cheerfully as the group of four meisters and weapons opened the door. "I'm glad you got my message!"

"Hi, Lord Death!" the group greeted upon seeing him.

"Hello, Father, what's this about?" Kid asked immediately, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Ah, Kid! It's so good to see you!" 

"You saw me this morning," he reminded.

"Really? Well, it has been a pretty crazy day!"

"Seems like it," a carefree voice stated bluntly from behind them.

Turning around the group was surprised to find Dr. Stein wheeling up in his computer chair. A lit cigarette dangled on his colorless lips as his glasses glinted in the Dead Room's lights.

"It's about time you got here, Stein!" Lord Death scolded, poking his head with a large gloved hand. "I was about to send Spirit after you."

"Wait, my papa's here!?" Maka groaned, looking around frantically.

"Unfortunately, yes," Lord Death replied with a frown as he ushered the students forward. "Which brings me to the reason I called you."

Entering the focal point of the Dead Room the group found Spirit, Sid, a woman, and young teen waiting in front of the mirror. 

The taller one was perched in Kid's throne, he typically sat in during conferences, with a paperback in hand looking to be in her mid-twenties. Spirit laid at the feet of the chair chattering and spewing professions of enamored feelings while hearts danced in his eyes at the woman's legs dangling carefree over the arm of the chair. On her feet were red converse, dirty and loosely tied poking out from beneath grey trousers, that matched the suspenders trailing up her long torso holding up her pants. Accompanying her outfit a loosely fitted cup sleeved collared shirt of bright orange rested slightly unbuttoned and tucked in. Her dark auburn hair laid short, in a wavy pixie cut that curled in random places. Her attitude and demeanor screamed reserve. 

"Beautiful, silent, ELEGANT muse," the death scythe proclaimed, smoothing his cheeks against the skin of the woman's now slightly exposed leg. "Personification of the goddess Athena herself! Please stay by my side and read me stories until we fall asleep in each other's _arms_!"

She turned the page, a brief sigh escaping her chapped lips but otherwise not offering any remark or reaction to the red head's request. Maka frowned at her father and made a mental note to nail him one when she got a chance.

The shorter one, on the other hand, fired questions quickly and excitedly, wearing down poor Sid as she spun around to take in the mysterious room. Her red, ruffled skirt fluttered around her waist as she jumped about, a large brown belt just barely seemed to hold it up. She had on a white polo, red accents on the short sleeves and collar, with black lace-up boots that reached just below her knees. The girl looked to be mixed race judging by her fawn colored skin, full lips, and shape of her eyes. Her bob of curly dark red hair had thick bangs that covered her forehead like a curtain. On the top of her head sat proudly a white headband with ribbons hanging down and a crystal skull on the left side that seemed to grin at them. A strange aura resonated from the peculiar headpiece, something ancient or otherworldly, and made the group of students shift uncomfortably. 

"So _this_ is the Death Room? It don't look like a 'Death Room' though!" she pointed out as Sid visibly began to sweat and lose the battle of resilience. "And why're you blue? You smell like old bananas and those moths balls ya find at the gas station . . . You're dead, aren't you? Are you dead? So you're a zombie? But why would Lord Death need a zombie? Couldn't he just bring ya back to life?" she inquired, her voice sweet and full of a very distinct Chicago dialect.

"A valid point. Maybe he'll be kind and grant me peace soon," the deceased teacher grumbled, giving his boss a pointed stare upon noticing his return. " _Very soon._ "

"Who are those chicks?" Black Star asked instantly upon seeing the weird group.

"Black Star . . . " Tsubaki said warningly as the one talking to Sid turned to notice the people.

The other with the book glanced up, unmoving, with hazel eyes surveying the newly arrived before returning to her novel. She seemed not to care.

"These are our new members!" Lord Death explained warmly as he hopped up the steps to Sid's side. "They just arrived last night in Death City and enrolled this morning!"

To Maka's right, Stein smiled eerily to himself as he stared in their direction. His student took notice of this and gazed at the newcomers, trying to figure out what he was grinning about.

 _He can see souls, maybe he's looking at that?_ Maka wondered as she closed her eyes and took a deep breath. _I'll look,_ she finished as her green eyes flashed open and her vision went dark. 

Staring at the two strangers she watched their souls become visible. The girl's floated pink with a serious and solemn expression plastered on its face in complete contrast to its owner's attitude. The soul pulsed with power, considerable for her age by Maka's judgment, and appeared to be roughly the same size as her own. But then, looking closer, Maka noticed a second wrapped around the girl. This one was oddly shaped, instead of a spherical look it twisted and bent protectively around the pink one that trembled every few seconds. Its face appeared long and sincere in a comforting sense as if trying to console the other.

 _Strange, I've never seen a soul do that . . ._ the young meister thought curiously before looking at the woman.

Her soul differed greatly from the latters. Orange with an eerie, sinister grin and rocking out of tune with the room's atmosphere. Wind seemed to whip around the strange person as her aura grew larger and larger by the minute. The soul was huge, rivaling in size as well as strength with none other than Professor Stein's, and upon inspection Maka saw something strange. On the left side were three long rips torn into the soul that caused energy to escape in and out of its insides in billowing gusts. 

 _What are those?_ she panicked in confusion and, admittedly slight, fear. _I've never seen or felt something so strange on a soul before! Is-is this why Crona's been acting especially anxious today?_ she added, shooting a glance at the now trembling Crona and unnaturally calm Ragnarok.

"Death, tell _Pigtails_ ta stop looking at our souls," a low, blunt voice said warningly with a Northern England accent, making Maka snap out of her trance.

The woman, who'd been reading, had shifted her concentration and gaze to the young student. A frown etched it's way across her face as she watched Maka with cynical, brooding eyes.

"Now, now," Lord Death calmed as he noticed the tension building between the two ladies, "Maka was just curious . . . Anyway, kids, this is Burnley Reid and Chima Knicks. They will be joining our very own D.W.M.A as it's most current members!"

Burnley stood up, Spirit toppled over as her legs were jerked from his hands. Standing the team gulped upon realizing how much she towered over them, even more than she'd seemed sitting down. Dangerously close to six feet, while Chima barely breached above five foot, her countenance leveled up to 'unnerving' as her body came to full view. Long legs, bigger build, and small areas of soft, extra flesh Burnley projected an intimidating, but potentially charming, appearance. Turning she closed her book and stuck it under her right arm to prepare herself for an interaction now that she'd been introduced. 

That's when they saw her scars. 

Three long tears dragged across Burnley's upper left arm, just below her sleeves, sticking out noticeably against her skin. They were dark pink and scratchy like the stitches had just stayed in when they healed. Liz gulped upon seeing them while Kid trembled. However, he was more bent up over the fact that she had scars on one side and not the other which could be seen as a bit insensitive. Kid remained silent on the matter and, instead, took to whimpering in discontentment to himself.

"Is that all you do here, _gawk_ at folk?" Burnley scoffed at the group. "I've scars. Do grow up."

"Don't get'll upset, Burnie," Chima scolded, looking up at her playfully with wide brown eyes. "They were only curious."

"My name is Burnley, _not_ Burnie. If you insist on shortening it I've told you I prefer 'Burn' instead!"

"And I like 'Chi'!" the bouncy redhead added, winking at the group and completely changing the subject.

"Soooooo," Liz said slowly trying to understand the pair, "what are you guys? Are you partners?"

"I wouldn't call it that," Burnley disagreed, eyes glancing at Chima. 

Looking closer Maka noticed they were actually brown with bright flecks of green inside and gave off the intense hazel look. Beneath them black and purple bags gathered, their darkness contrasting greatly against her particularly light skin to create an unsettling glare, and the young meister realized something else.

 _She's recently been very sick,_ Maka thought with a concerned expression, _and I don't think she's fully recovered. She looked exhausted . . ._

"Imma a weapon. Burnie's a meister," Chi explained.

"It's. Not. _Burnie_."

"The two of us normally go by ourselves but sometimes we team up. I'm a double-ended spear, from my Pop's side, however, I prefer to wield myself!"

"An autonomous weapon? Like Justin Law?" Soul asked, a twinge of jealously edging in his voice.

Maka knew he was still hung up over the fact he couldn't wield himself as well as the death scythe could.

"Who?" Chi returned with a cock of her head.

"Another death scythe, like myself," Spirit put in as he invited himself to join the conversation. "The youngest ever to be exact _and_ a priest!"

"Weird."

"But true!" he continued to Maka's annoyance while Stein nonchalantly puffed his cigarette looking bored. "Justin helped defeat a powerful enemy in the Battle of Sanity only a while ago and assisted with the rebuilding of Death City!"

"While he's great and all," Kid interrupted to impede further mentions of a certain music loving vicar, "I'm more interested in my new schoolmates." 

"Yeah, like what can you do, Burn?" Patty laughed excitedly.

Dead silence rendered the room stagnant as everyone looked around.

"What the hell?" Soul snapped at the blinking silhouette of where Burnley had been standing. "Where did she go?"

"Burnley?" Crona spoke up for the first time since they had arrived. "She left about ten minutes ago . . ."

"Yeah, that lady just strolled right out of here while you were all jabbering!" Ragnarok added with a snort.

"Whoa, they talk!" Chi jumped surprised as she heard the pink person and their black frog-thing answer.

"You bet we do, Tutu!" he snapped back to Crona's distress.

"It's a skirt!" she grouched crossing her arms and narrowing her eyes him.

"So Burnley is a meister but works alone?" Tsubaki redirected, slipping Ragnarok a piece of candy to shut him up. "How does that work is she doesn't have a weapon?"

"Burnley is a meister who is a rare case like Dr. Stein and Maka," Lord Death explained simply to the students. "Her parents were a weapon and a meister so she was born as both! Burnley has such a strong soul, as well as impeccable control of her wavelength, that she can transfer the energy into bolts, similar to Stein and his Soul Force attacks. Since her mother was an autonomous canon weapon she's able to transform some parts of her body into them in order to defend herself in battle, like Maka and her scythes. However, the difference being for Miss Albarn, Burnley can remain conscious during an attack and is completely in control of herself as if she'd been born fully as a weapon."

"How?" Maka asked, curious to understand how on earth that woman could control her body like that when it had nearly killed her own self in only a coma induced state.

 _Also, how does Lord Death know so much about this new member? Did he look her up or is there something he's not telling us about her real situation?_ she wondered as well.

"Burnley trained and honed her skills as a Utility Meister until she became able to functionally access her weaponry makeup in a fully awakened state. Eventually, Maka," Lord Death added, "you could be able to do this as well with intense practice."

She chewed on that, not seeing the worried frown plaguing Soul's face as he thought about it too. It didn't sound good or even safe to him.

 _That Burnley chick is weird, scary really,_ Soul inwardly grumbled, _all distant and quiet_. _What if it was all that training and shit that made her like that? I don't, I don't want that to happen to Maka,_ he added, gazing at his partner. _I don't want her to become something like that._

"But what about . . . " Tsubaki trailed off, feeling bad and bringing the conversation back to the mysterious, new arrivals.

"Her scars?" Chi finished for her. "That'd be my fault.

"What happened?" Kid inquired.

The girl frowned and rubbed her arm, thinking about her friend.

"It wasn't that long ago when it happened but I got mixed up in the Kishin's madness. I'd been wandering the streets in Chicago, where I'm from if ya didn't already catch on, and I met Burnie who was just coming from London on her way to D.W.M.A. She tried to help me but I was confused and out of it so I lashed out at her. Long story short, she saved me and almost lost her life doing so. She got me the help I needed and I've hung around since," she finished sheepishly.

 _Is that why she'd been sick?_ Maka wondered.

"But what's with the skull?" Black Star asked out of the blue.

"The what?" Liz asked and frowned.

 _He's kinda missing the point of the backstory . . ._ she added silently.

"You mean Ravu?" Chi inquired, reaching up and plucking the crystal skull off her headband.

"Yeah," Black Star said with a nod, "what's up with the strange energy coming off it? It's weird!"

"He's a guardian passed down through my family that helps protect and contain us," Chi explained, holding him gently for the others to see. "Ravu was a dragon but after becoming indebted to my great-great-granddaddy he sealed himself inside this brooch to be with our family at all costs."

"Like a genie!" Patty cheered.

"Not quite."

 _So that's the strange soul I saw around her,_ Maka realized as she watched the two's wavelengths match in sync. 

"Have you ever seen anything like it, Stein?" Spirit asked distractedly as he gazed at the pin. "Stein?"

"Professor Stein left a while ago too," Crona said when the death scythe received no reply. "He says pasts were boring."

"Of course he did," Spirit said with a sigh.   

 

}{

 

**Wednesday, September 8th**

**11:35 A.M.**

 

Burnley admired the library as she perused the shelves. Marveling she thought it to be the largest she'd ever been in and relatively quiet for the types of students enrolled. She smiled faintly, something rare she did, and headed in the direction of the classic works. Shakespeare was her favorite. 

Stein rolled into the library, carefully watching the strange new woman. It'd been a while since he had seen such an interesting specimen and his curiosity had steadily gotten the better of him. Despite the size of her soul, and the strange energy rips it possessed, he noticed an abnormality during the welcoming party that he doubted anyone other than himself had.  

A hoard of madness dwelled and swirled within her. 

He had first been clued in on this development upon entering the Dead Room and feeling its presence. Then, after simply perceiving her soul and it's unsettling expression, he easily came to his first conclusion. Throughout the meeting he observed and researched her body unnoticed, thanks to Maka's obvious amateur perception distracting Burnley, to attempt to uncover more information about the blackness within. Like himself, Stein could see she tried to bottle it away as best as she could, nevertheless, that much blackness . . . it must be hard to contain.

 _I manage with my screw and keeping busy,_ the scientist thought, watching her reach a book on a high shelf with ease. _What's her secret to such pensive sanity?_

Abandoning his chair in the care of Kim and Jacqueline, who had been studying nearby, he dared closer. He admired the way Burnley walked, how she kept her arms close to her sides. She took short curt steps, almost like a shuffle, even though with the length of her legs she went quickly. The way she moved was odd, even to Stein, but he after pondering and observing for a few minutes more he came to understand her actions. 

_It's as if she's holding herself together._

Burnley's muscles strained against the number of books she carried in her arms as she walked along, ignoring the stares from the other students and faculty. Without regard, she carried on. She didn't care what they thought of her, it wasn't her or anyone's business anyway.

 _Strange school but I find it grand,_ Burnley thought peacefully as she sat down her books nearby and reached over to the bookshelf to grab another that caught her eye. _I'd been hesitant when Lord Death first contacted me about his offer though, now that I'm here, I think it'll be manageable. Perhaps things will nip on smoothly this year?_

Pulling out a large novel she found a face staring through the empty space. A pair of large oval glasses gazed at her from their resting place atop a very pale, almost sickly, nose. A curved line of stitches swung across the left side of the man's face and disappeared into his mess of silver hair that seemed to merge with the smoke wavering off his cigarette. She stood there, book in hand, with a blank expression as she stared back at the figure stooped and resting his head on the opposite bookshelf.

_Perhaps not._

Frowning, Burnley replaced the book back to its resting spot, snuffing out the man's direct view quite pointedly, and returned to her work. She ignored the sound of clanking from the other side of the row, most likely from the stranger turning the giant screw thrusted into his head. Silently she wondered its purpose before focusing on the bigger question at hand.

 _He's the other meister who'd been in the Dead Room a few minutes ago,_ Burnley remembered as she thought back to the way he had read deeply her soul with eerie curiosity and discomfort, _and the one with the massive stitched soul. The one that seemed to empower the entire room. Why on earth does he think it necessary to purse me outside of the meeting, well stalk chuffin', when obviously I don't desire company? What a strange, bothersome fella,_ she concluded with a huff, making her way to the pile of books she'd set up in a corner and ignoring the heavy footsteps that followed suit.

"Strange name 'Burnley'," a deep thick voice nonchalantly observed as she took a seat at the table, "foreign really. You're from Northern Yorkshire. Your accent and name give it away."

Burnley looked up to find the man she had seen behind the bookshelf carefully hovering beside the table. Stein in return looked downward in her direction, a faint smile on his lips hugging a cigarette while he slowly rounded the corner.

"Please don't speak to me," the meister said simply, tearing her gaze away and tending to a particularly large book from the pile. "I'm not one for idle chatta, let alone with strangers."

"I find that hard to believe," Stein disagreed, sliding into the open place across from her and sitting down backward on the chair. "You didn't hesitate to call out Maka and the others for their innocent staring."

He folded his arms over the top of the chair and rested his chin with a hum of satisfaction. His glasses lost their glare to reveal the detached olive green eyes they hid. Burnley shivered at the look they gave. It made her nervous knowing they reminded her of her own.

"As I said, please leave me alone," she repeated, holding the book high in front of her face to bluntly convey she had no further interest in continuing any conversation.

Stein cranked his screw and smirked. He was wearing on her.

"So, what're you doing here at the D.W.M.A? Strange for someone like you to come from so far away. What's the reason? Was it Lord Death who summoned you? Is it—"

Before Stein could finish the book in Burnley's hand slammed shut onto the table and she started from her chair. The sound rattling behind her loudly enough to momentarily silence the massive library. 

"This is _harassment_ ," she said thickly, her accent becoming stronger and sharper with annoyance. "I said leave me alone or I'll report you to a higher power."

"This is not harassment. I’m simply asking questions," Stein returned, hands waving in front of him lazily in defense. 

"Then quit _whatever_ it is you're doing! Harassing, bothering, or hitting on m—"

"Who's to say I don't care about you?" He raised a silver eyebrow suggestively.

"We've just met. You're full of it," Burnley huffed, getting more and more annoyed with the strange man. "I'm a weapon. Sod off or I'll fire and report you."

Stein chuckled as he took a drag from his cigarette before allowing it to dangle on his lips.

"You're lying," he stated rather simply.

"I _will_ report you!" Burnley threatened again.

"No, about being a weapon and firing," Stein interrupted to her surprise. "You love books obviously and would never do anything to harm them. Also, you're a meister not a weapon but definitely part of one. I'll bet that saying that you are and you'll shoot is your go-to escape claim. Why would you say that?"

She grew quiet, her rage dying, and resumed her seat. Sitting she began twisting her hands in her lap as she stared at the wooden table. Her face slackened into something dark and unreadable. Stein couldn't tell what she was going to say.

"It's to keep fowk like you from bothering me. Fowk are wary and hesitant to gabble around with a weapon if thee know what damage it could do to them . . ."

There was a pause as the man processed this notation.

"This happens often?"

"Have you seen my soul?" Burnley returned, her hazel eyes glaring into Stein's beneath her thick brows.

 _They look pained,_ the scientist thought, _exhausted really._

"'That's why you're talking to me, correct?" she continued, brushing her hand across a book with a look of disdain. "You have the ability to perceive souls, I know you can because I feel when someone is observing mine quite acutely, and you're intrigued by mine. Haven't been able to take thee curious eyes off it. Most are. Most can’t. See I get all sorts of unwanted attention due to its' uniqueness and disability from being torn. I'd rather be alone, my solidarity protects me and, unknowingly, others. If I can find anything to help keep fowk out of range and out of my way, then I'll do it."

 _Oh, that's it._ Stein straightened up. _She doesn't want to lose control from everyone around her crowding so often. Her soul drawls others in and their curiosity is peaked. It makes her anxious so she keeps them away._

"I'll be honest," Stein began, "I did come out of curiosity. You're interesting, but not just your soul. Let's try this again," he said, reaching out a hand. "Hello, I'm Dr. Franken Stein."

Burnley looked at the hand strangely, her eyes narrowed in suspicion. 

_What an odd name._

"A pleasure, Dr. Stein," she returned after a moment, without shaking his hand. "A pleasure."

"You may call me 'Stein'," he returned as she tried to disappear behind another book. "After all we _are_ colleagues."

Burnley stood up, leaving behind her books. She felt done with the all too revealing interaction and exhausted from probably anymore in the foreseeable future with the madman. That chat had ruined her forever conversing with strangers again. 

Stein followed behind her.

"So what subject? Lord Death must have sent for you to begin teaching immediately since we're in desperate need of new instructors after the recent battle."

"Criminal Brains and Kishin Identification," Burnley returned, not holding the door for him, "and I'll not be calling you ' _Stein_ '. I want you to think of me as just another member."

"I don't think I possibly could," Stein said with a smile and crank of his screw, "but I'll try to make you comfortable. Speaking of which, have you found housing yet?"

"As a matter o' fact, aye," she huffed turning the corner sharply, shoes squeaking. “Chima and I are staying in a small house in the city."

"Where?"

"Why on earth would I tell you?"

"There you are!" Sid's deep voice rang out from across the hall.

Turning, Burnley and Stein found the blue zombie lumbering towards the two.

"Dr. Reid, you ran off before I could talk to you about classroom accommodations and the meeting with the school board this evening!"

"Apologizes, Sid," Burnley said as she smiled faintly, her expression sad and tired. "I just wanted to see the school a bit before I had to start. Also, 'Burnley' or 'Burn' would suffice, no need for such formality."

That last comment was more of a direct stab at Dr. Stein's earlier request and he suppressed a chuckle, noticing for the first time a more childish side of the new professor.

"It's alright and thanks," Sid said with a chuckle, rubbing the back of his neck with a faint blush covering his mostly sunken cheeks. "But we should get going now. Your boxes got here early so I put them in storage since you were, ahem, delayed . . . We better start moving them."

"Aye, o' course," Burnley returned with a nod, using this chance to push past Stein and hurry to Sid's side. "We better start _immediately_. Let's nip on now."

Then, without giving Stein so much as a nod, the meister left quickly. Stein watched her leave with a smile, catching her glance as she turned the corner with a squeak of her red shoes. He took a drag of his cigarette and turned his screw twice, the clank sounding loudly through the empty halls. 

 _She'll be fun,_ the doctor thought as he stuck his hands in his pockets. _She'll be very fun._

Then he headed back towards the library to see two girls about his chair. 

 

}{

 

**Wednesday, September 8th**

**7:12 P.M.**

 

"You've been quiet, Burnie," Chi said softly as she unpacked a red kettle and sat it on the counter.

"I haven't had anything to say," Burnley replied, opening another box and pulling out plates wrapped in newspaper, "and quit calling me 'Burnie'."

The two girls were unpacking their belongings the movers had just dropped off at their new house in Death City. After a long day at school, the two had come home to their empty house where they had to get to work. Already tired and hungry the girls grumbled as they unpacked, hurrying to finish since it was the only time off left available that busy first week. Their new house was a small, two-story building with uneven, tan, stone siding and a large front porch that needed painting. Two flower boxes for repotting, which Burnley rattled with excitement to do, lined the front windows on either side of the door with chipped brown shutters that rattled at the slightest puff of wind. The tin mailbox rusted badly from rainwater at the edge of their walkway and the grey roof was in dire need of retiling, as shingles kept falling off and hitting passing pedestrians.

Inside there were three bedrooms on the second floor and a bathroom on each level. The upstairs' the girls found thankfully large with both a small, glass shower as well as a claw-footed bathtub in the corner by the toilet and sink. Meanwhile, downstairs the bathroom only had a toilet and sink that branched off to the left when you entered the house in a small nook. To the right, upon entry, rested a large living room with a long couch and television in the far corner, already installed, in addition to Burnley's personal, black armchair. Down the hall, past the stairs, the dining room opened up into the kitchen where a small island with bar stools sat centered. 

A fixer-upper for sure . . .

"Did you have a grand day?"  Burnley asked Chi as she unwrapped a vase.

"Yeah!" the redhead returned as she set the cups and bowls in the cupboard. "I met so many new people and my class is awesome!"

"'That's good to hear."

"And that Soul Eater's real hot!"

A small spark of explosives shot out of Burnley's fingertips, caught off guard momentarily by the sudden statement. The newspaper bundle in her hands caught on fire and crackled around her.

"Burnie! Watch it!" Chi snapped as she stomped out the flames quickly to avoid scorch marks on the new wooden floor.

"Soul Eater!?" the older woman coughed as smoke got in her lungs.

"Yeah, that one white-haired guy."

 "His name is Soul _Eater_?"

"Well, he normally goes by Soul, but yup."

"What's his last name ?" 

"Evans, I think . . . Why?"

"Nothin," Burnley replied, smoothing down her curly hair and returning to her work, "it's just an extremely odd name. Knocked me off my game a bit, that's all."

 _Who in their right mind would name their child 'Soul Eater'?_ she grumbled disgustedly in her mind. _His parents must have EXTRAORDINARY reasoning for doing something as outrageous as that. Poor lad, he must suffer from such an unfortunate name. I'll have to be kind to him I suppose in class . . ._

"You're silly," Chi pointed out before stacking up the empty boxes and moving on, "but hey! Where'd ya go when you left?"

"The library."

"Sounds borin'," Chi sighed, blowing her bangs out of her face.

"It chuffin' wasn't," Burnley disagreed.


	2. The Confusing, Memorable, and Undeniably Dangerous First Day of Criminology - The professors share a profound and inexplicable bond?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy Halloween! I'm back with chapter 2 of this story! It looks like I will be updating every two weeks for now. I think I can manage it with school and my other projects. Hope you all enjoy it!

**Friday, September 10th**

**9:25 A.M.**

"Then, before the gang leader could react, I leaped forward and transformed my arms into blades. Dodging the other members I reached the unsuspecting leader and sliced off 'is first two fingers, causing him to drop his gun. Crying in agony he collapsed to the ground clutching his bleeding hand and surrendered the money he owed them. And that's how I defeated West Chicago's Pace Gang!" Chima finished at school the next day to her new friends as they gapped at her in awe.

"Whoa! That was amazing!" Patty clapped excitedly with her sister.

"Yeah, we could've used your help a bunch back on the streets in Brooklyn!" Liz added.

"Aw shucks, you two," Chima said and smiled as she flipped her red bob of hair. 

"So that's why you were called 'Two Finger'? Because you'd cut them off of greedy people?" Soul asked curiously with a toothy grin.

"Yup, that was my signature back in Chicago."

"Sweet!" He laughed deeply making Chima feel proud.

"Nice story but I think you need to step up your game some more if you want to be as big a star as I am! HA HA HA!" Black Star added haughtily with a laugh of his own.

"I don't think that was her point," Tsubaki chided with a weak smile.

"Nevertheless, you're an impressive fighter," Kid put in before things could get hairy. "You were able to hold your own for a long time. How long did you say you lived by yourself before meeting Burnley?"

"Two years," Chima returned, "my Ma died when I was born and my Pop got killed by a rival gang. I ran away from my foster home when I was ten."

"Well, I'm glad everything worked out in the end," Maka returned with a smile, trying to ease the mood. 

"Yeah."

"Oh, where _is_ Burnley, by the way?" Kid asked as he looked around. "Come to think of it, I didn't see her yesterday either . . ."

"She'll be here real soon," Chima assured as the bell rang for second period.

Down the hall, there was the steady thumping of footsteps followed by the rustling of papers. The door of the classroom creaked open and the students looked up to see Burnley enter the room. Her clothes hadn't changed since the day the group had met her: orange blouse, grey trousers, red converse, and the matching suspenders tactfully snapped on at the waistline. It became clear, like Chima's outfit, that those where her signature clothes. The only change seemed to be the grey tweed blazer, same as her pants, that was slung across her back with her right hand. Using her free arm she carried an enormous stack of dusty books and a pile of papers that looked ancient, muscles rippling from the weight to send waves dancing across her nauseating scars. 

The students collectively gulped at the unruly sight.

Silently she crossed the room feeling everyone's eyes on her and sat her things on the desk. Then she turned to face the class, resting against the massive table with her hands behind her for support.

"Good morning, class," Burnley began as most of the jaws of the students' dropped, if they hadn't already. "I'm thy new Criminal Brains and Kishin Identification teacher. My name is Burnley Reid and you will address me as Professor Reid, Dr. Reid, Miss Reid, or Sir. To start off, I expect you to be ready to fettle when the bell rings and, at least, _near_ thy seats. If you have a seating arrangement already: disregard it, as long as you fettle. Those who disrespect me, or my class, will be removed and those who don't shall thrive in their education. Honestly, I don't have an attendance sheet today, so I'm going to make one from scratch. Now," she paused to snatch up a clipboard from behind her, "shall we begin?" 

Silence rained down on the classroom, no one knew what to say next. Suddenly a snicker erupted from the corner of the room and all eyes turned to see Sebastian Lamen laughing haughtily.

"Oh no . . ." Tsubaki whispered to herself while Black Star eyed the chuckling teen irritably. 

Even the man who'll, apparently, surpass God himself knows _respect_.

"Is this a joke?" Sebastian asked and laughed as Burnley stared up at him. "What are you, twenty? And you expect us to believe that you're our teacher now? Ha! What a riot!"

"Sebastian," his meister, Lanie O'Neal, hissed next to him. "Just shut up."

"And what's with that ridiculous accent? Are we working for the Queen now? I didn't come all the way down from Maine to be instructed by good old Britain. There's no way I’m—”

While he'd been rudely prattling on, Burnley had lost interest in the loud unintelligent student and turned her attention to a novel. Raising her right arm her fingers shifted and whirred like a machine in a sudden flash of orange energy. When the burst of light cleared, her fingers had transformed into small brass cannons that clicked and turned. Then, without changing her expression or even lifting her concentrated eyes from the current page, she fired three shots simultaneously. Soaring across the room in thrill shrieks the bullets erupted into the wall right behind Sebastian's head, leaving a halo of destruction right above his dark hair. His rant cut off immediately, staring down at Burnley with fright widening his brown eyes and sweat beading on his forehead.

"Are you finished?" Burnley inquired, her sharp gaze snapping up from her book and shifting to his direction. "Honestly, did you not hear a word I said? Those who disrespect my class will be removed and to be clear," she added, blowing a puff of smoke off her fingers, "I _never_ miss."

Sebastian sunk low into his seat as he mumbled an apology, his cheeks red and flaming. Beside him, his partner shook her head of auburn curls, embarrassed by his loud mouth. Everyone else gawked at Burnley with awe as she slammed her book closed and transformed her canons back into fingers. 

 _She's a lot tougher than I thought,_ Maka thought silently with a gulp. 

"Since _Mr. Bassy_ here has brought it to my attention that I may not have fully covered everything, I would like to take dis time to tell a bit about thyself." Burnley hopped up on the desk and crossed her arms in front of her, legs folding pleasantly over themselves. "My mother's a Gatling gun and my father's a utility meister, therefore, as a result, I'm somewhat of a hybrid. Similar to _Pigtails_ up there," she said indicating to Maka. "I'm an only child and I grew up in Masham, Yorkshire, England until I was fifteen. I then transferred to London where I attended university and graduated at nineteen with a doctorate in Criminal Psychology and a Masters degree in Criminology. I’m twenty-five now. I have an eidetic memory, so please don't say anything you don't want me to remember, and an I.Q. of 176. I was sent to America by invitation from Lord Death himself to fulfill a teaching position. Questions?" Burnley finished, her hazel eyes flashing about the room.

Most everyone gulped and shook their heads.

"Grand, then let's begin," the teacher returned, picking up the clipboard and writing down names.

 

}{

 

**Friday, September 10th**

**10:12 A.M.**

 

The bells signaling the end of class rang out and the students sighed, standing up to stretch. Burnley, now finished with her first lesson, closed the textbook she'd been instructing from and hurriedly began to pack up her books just as Dr. Stein rolled into the room to teach his period. Unknowingly to the new instructor, the professors of classes during second and third period actually shared the same classroom to cut back on time.

"Hello, Burnley," Stein greeted, scooting his chair over next to her.

"Dr. Stein," she returned with a curt nod, eyes not wavering from their glare of concentration as she shuffled her papers around.

"How did class go?"

"Fine," Burnley replied, tucking a piece of curly hair behind her ear. "You may need to replace the wall behind Bassy back there."

Stein looked towards the direction she had thumbed over her shoulder at and found Sebastian receiving a scolding from his meister, covered in wood splinters. Above him smoked a ring of holes in the said wall.

 _Bullets?_ he wondered, pushing up his glasses. _He must've really pissed her off. I'll make him help with today's' dissection as punishment._

"I'll send word to Lord Death to have Joe come fix it, Burnley, so don't wor—"

Stein stopped, looking at the blinking silhouette of Burnley's past location.

"She already left, professor," Chima called from her seat. "Sorry, she don't like chattin'!"

"I see," he mused with a shrug, kicking off of the desk and hopping down the stairs on his chair, "well, Sebastian come down and help me set up. We're going to be dissecting a jaundice infested pig today!”

 

}{

 

**Friday, September 10th**

**10:48 A.M.**

 

 

"Oh man, am I hungry!" Black Star grumbled, rubbing his equally as loud stomach as he went down the steps from his seat.

"Same," Tsubaki added as she smiled sheepishly, "I really worked up an appetite from gym this morning."

"We better head down to lunch," Soul said with a grin, fingers laced behind his head as he walked towards the doorway. "Today they're serving grilled chicken and fresh fruit. It'll be gone by the time we make it down there at this rate . . ."

"Soul's right.” Maka nodded, Crona following her silently. "Do you guys want to go on ahead and save us some food?" she asked Kid and his weapons. "We'll put your things in my locker to save time."

"Yeah, that'd be great!" Patty cheered, dumping her sister and her's supplies in the unsuspecting arms of Crona before grabbing her partners' arms. "Let's go! See you soon!"

Then they were gone in a flicker of light and chorus of protests.

"Hey, Chi?" Soul called over his shoulder at the redhead lingering at her desk awkwardly. "Aren't you coming with us?"

The girl looked around quickly before pointing to herself with an excited expression, a small blush igniting and darkening her cheeks.

"Me?" she repeated with wide eyes.

"Yeah, I don't know that many 'Chi's," Soul said as he grinned. "Why?"

"Well, um . . . No one's ever asked me to sit with them, 'cept Burnie . . . " Chima replied with a frown, a little embarrassed.

"That's a damn shame," Soul said. "You're an awesome chick! Come on, let's go get some grub together with everyone else."

Chima blinked, looking towards the group of friends all smiling and waiting for her. For the first time in her life, since Burnley, she felt truly accepted and like she belonged somewhere. Now it impacted her even more than before because she had friends her own age that welcomed and encouraged her as one of them, part of their lives. Happily, she snatched up her books and hopped down the steps towards the others, eager to make the moment last.

"Okay! Imma coming" She called with a smile before the rolling of a chair stopped her in her tracks.

"Chima, I'd hate to keep you from your lunch arrangements but there's something I wanted to talk to you about," Dr. Stein inquired from his place next to the young teen. "It won't take long, I just have a few questions. Can you spare a moment?"

The girl paused and glanced at her new friends still hovering in the doorway waiting, just for her.

"Save me a spot and some lunch?" Chi asked with a wink.

"Anytime," Maka returned with a wave and they all hurried down the hall.

"So what's up, professor?" Chima said, turning her attention to the odd teacher slouching forward in his chair.

"I had a question about the past you share with Dr. Reid," he began, pushing up his glasses as they caught a glare. "You said you got tangled up in the Kishin's madness awhile back during the war, correct?"

"Yeah, back in Chicago," she said with a nod, leaning back against Stein's desk and holding her arms behind her back. "Burnie had just gotten off her plane and was headed towards the train station to take her to her next stop. It started storming real bad, so she had to stop and take shelter at an old bus stop. The area was pretty shady. Burnie saw me roaming the streets, soaked and filthy with a bad cold, and tried to help me like the sweetie she is. I was submerged in madness and hallucinating badly when she approached me," Chi remembered, gripping her arms a little harder as she thought back to that dark time. 

Stein watched her silently, observing her internal struggle with the pain of her past.

"I was seein' all sorts of things, like demons and ghosts of people from my past under the madness' influence, so I didn't realize she was just a normal person trying to help. Burnie saw what was happening to me. She knew it to be the Kishin's doing and, even though it'd been advised to ignore people like me, she went against them rules trying to help me. Burnie kept coming closer, attempting to pull me out before I fully was submerged in the madness, and I got scared. When she came close enough to touch me I lashed out in defense, tearing up her arm and very soul as well. Burnie took a huge blow, both physically and mentally, but still, that crazy woman wouldn't let me go. She managed to bring me to my senses, even though she was injured badly, and saved me."

 _Burnley's even more daring than I initially thought,_ Stein mused as he listened to the story. _She might prove to be a problem if a situation arises._

"Right after she brought me to consciousness, Burnie collapsed. I rushed her to a hospital and found out she'd lost a little over two liters of blood," Chima resumed.

"That's a lot," Stein remarked, surprised and a bit concerned. "Too much actually."

"Yeah," she returned and nodded, "the doctors said that if I hadn't got her there sooner she'd a died on the street. Burnie got hospitalized for two weeks and I stayed by her side, a dirty street urchin who hadn't bathed in months at the time. The funny thing was, I didn't even know her name. During her recovery, we found out her soul had been damaged and the doctors wondered why, since she'd such a strong one, it wasn't healing. Then it 'came clear. When I'd cut Burnie I'd transferred my madness into her."

"Like her soul had absorbed it . . ." Stein added, deep in thought.

"Yup," Chima said, "exactly. She put her life on the line to drag me out of the madness and get me clean again, but in the process contaminated herself. It didn't hurt Burnie like it did me, however, the madness didn't leave her even after the Kishin's reign. She often goes into these 'spits', as she calls 'em, and succumbs to medium levels of insanity. Once she got cut loose from the clinic she took me with her. For 'bout two months we lived in a hotel, Burnie wanted to get her strength back before coming to the D.W.M.A., and she took care of me real nice like. Bought me clothes, books, and a 'hole lotta other things I'd never had much of. She tutored, when she weren't sleeping or resting, and prepared me for school since I'd never really gone. In fact," Chima added with a proud smile and a grateful air to her, "Burnie went all out and became my official legal guardian until I turn eighteen in five years!"

"Congratulations," Stein said a smile gracing his pale lips as he took out his cigarette to give her a polite nod. "That must be exciting for you. Are you happy?"

"Oh yes," she returned as she nodded furiously, then she stopped and stared at her boots with her brown eyes dim, "but I get scared sometimes."

He snuffed out his cigarette and stood up to full height, leaning against the desk to look at her clearly. He raised a silver eyebrow. Stein didn't like how she'd said that.

"Chima, what are you scared of _exactly_?"

She sighed, picking at a fuzz on her shirt.

"I worry about her. About Burnie. She did so much for me: saved my life, took me in, bought me necessities, and even became my new mom which can still be hard to call her to her face. Yet, she needs so much more help than I do. She's hurt and as scared as I am from the madness. I watch over her to make sure she's safe. After all, I'm in her debt after what I'd done to her arm . . . Burnie was already withdrawn from the world before the madness started to eat away at her mind, now she's even more so. She distances herself from others, so she won't let them catch her 'plague' as she refers, and tries to hold herself together. I worry about her. She's lost quite a bit because of me . . ."

 

}{

 

**Friday, September 24th**

**8:14 P.M.**

 

Two uneventful weeks went past for the newcomers of the DWMA and the autumn weather was beautiful. With the help of their new friends, Burnley and Chima had begun to fix up their small home, slowly starting to settle into the city. 

 

Chima loved her classmates. 

Often she went out with them to see a movie or practice basketball in the park, which she especially loved because she got a chance to show off her skills she'd picked up from years of Chicago street ball. They all accepted Chima into their group and Burnley, even though she acted as more as a chaperone and mom, as well who normally distanced herself from the others by reading off to the side. Burnley enjoyed the other teachers and adults at the academy, well mostly everyone . . .  She volunteered in the library, actually her hidden motives were more for her to hide from people, and she worked late hours after school to get work done. 

As she currently was.

Burnley looked up from her finished pile of paperwork and sighed at the clock on the wall. It was late, the setting sleepy sun outside already a decent clue, and she knew that Chima would get hungry without her. However, before she could go there was one last thing she had to do. So, in order to have time, she packed up her things and hurried down the hall, heading quickly in the direction of the academy's roof. Outside the evening air was cool and crisp, a slight breeze picking up the leaves falling from the nearby trees. The sky, a brilliant orange and red, filled with clouds that were twisting in beautiful shapes stretching out along the horizon line. 

Burnley sighed, running a hand through her curly short hair and dropped her bag bursting with papers by the door. She walked to the edge of the roof's balcony and reached into the pocket of her trousers. Out of a small box, she slipped out a single cigarette and held it with her lips, returning the carton back to her pocket. Silently she held up an index finger and glanced down as it whirred into a small cannon, the small spark it emitted lighting the tip of her cigarette. As her finger returned to normal she took a long drag before blowing the smoke out into the air, a small skull-shaped ring escaping from her lips.

"Better," she said and smiled faintly, her hazel eyes clearing from the dullness they'd possessed earlier. "I felt as if I'd never find time to pop out for a fag. Well, better late than never I suppose . . ."

 _What a place,_ she remarked silently, looking at the exquisite landscape and architecture spread around the city. _It's just so much more different than anywhere I had ever traveled to. Sure, Masham and London are magnificent, and Chicago is enormous but Death City? It's like a completely different world. I guess I'm just glad Chima can live in such an amazing place . . . It sure is peaceful out here._

She'd felt it lately. 

The pull. 

Her fingers clenched around her arms and dug into the flesh as a wave of anxiety washed over her. She felt the rough uneven scrapes of her scars. The pain. The agony of feeling your mind tearing itself apart from the inside and not being able to anything about it. 

The madness. 

She felt it crawling and itching up her spine to peek just far enough into her skull to make her twitch. An episode was coming, a big one, and it'd be there soon.

_A few weeks, a month at most. Maybe even less than that if I continue like this._

Burnley took a long, slow breath and let the smoke roll out in a thick stream. She leaned forward on her arms as she rested against the stone balcony. 

"So," she said cooly, tapping ash off the end of her cigarette, " how long are you going to lurk about in the shadows, Dr. Stein?"

The said doctor stepped out from the shade under the overhanging roof, his long shadow stretching across the cobblestones and stopping next to Burnley who glanced at it half-interested.   

"Evening," Stein greeted, waving a hand at the woman by the ledge, "pretty night, isn't?"

"Mmhm . . ." she hummed, a puff of smoke taking the form of a grinning skull. 

"I didn't know you smoked.”  

"I don't."

"What?"

"This isn't a habit of mine," Burnley explained, glancing over her shoulder at the approaching man. "I usually get by with nicotine patches or choddy but, every once in a while, I need my kicks."

Stein nodded, taking out his own carton and sliding a cigarette into his mouth before pocketing the box. 

"I was the same way during my late school years," he returned, looking for a match, "the smoke was messing up my experiments so I had to switch to an alternative. I guess now I just work around it. I don't care as much."

Stein felt a tap on his arm and looked up to find Burnley waiting with a finger raised, a small flame flickering from the machine cap. 

"Thanks," he said, bending down to light his cigarette.

His breath felt warm and moist against Burnley's hand, a few stray locks of his grey hair brushing against her skin as they fell loose from stooping.

"Don't make it a habit," she turned away, staring up at the dozing sun.

The two teachers were quiet, skull smoke rising into the air from the ends of their cigarettes as they watched the sky. Stein didn't plan on seeing Burnley up on the roof. It’d been surprisingly coincidental. He had just gotten out of a meeting with Lord Death and Spirit about some upcoming remedial lessons when he noticed the sky from the window when he passed into the hall. Now, at first glance, Stein didn't seem like the type of man to admire nature, or the sunset for any matter, but with October looming overhead, his favorite season, his hidden pleasure took over. He decided to go up to the roof for a smoke, calm his rather bizarre mind, and observe the sun's descent for the day. To see Burnley all alone up on the roof, obviously sharing his idea, was a surprise and Stein wanted to allow her some privacy before she took notice of his soul presence. 

"Do you chuffing take me for that much of a fool?" Burnley asked offhand, bluntly simple, blowing a long stream of smoke out and keeping her eyes focused forward. "I know you talked to Chima a few weeks ago about what happened to me behind my back. Why the inquiry? Couldn't restrain yourself long enough for the rumors to nip on around?"

Stein looked at her, his silver eyebrows slightly arched in surprise. Her tone was sharp and venomous, downright insulting. Almost like she was hurt by him going behind her back. 

 _What's her angle?_ he wondered silently. _Does she care that much?_

"Well, being the way you are I doubt I was ever going to find out."

"It's not chuffing any of thy business."

"That's true," Stein said and shrugged playfully. ”I guess curiosity killed the cat."

"But satisfaction brought it back," Burnley finished and looked towards the doctor with a skeptical expression, a small puff filtered out from her lips.

"Not many people know the rest of that saying. I'm impressed," he returned with a chuckle, shifting in the direction of the sleeping sun and turning his screw absentmindedly. "I'm sorry for intruding on your business. To be honest I couldn't help it. I find you admirable and someone I'd like to know better. Like I said before, you're an interesting specimen."

"Admirable? Huh, haven't heard that one before,” the women said and turned over in her head. "Sounds like a sweet way to say ‘ _gormless_ ’.”

Burnley decided not to comment on the 'specimen' term. She'd already been well informed by Chima's friends, and other various members of the D.W.M.A., of the eccentric professor's personal 'extra-curricular activities'. She knew what he'd been implying.

"We're all a bit stupid," Stein began with a shrug. “If not we wouldn't be human. Our race is a fascinating one full of mystery and simplicity. What drives us is our will to live but in others it's completely the opposite, it's the _thrill_ to live. Those few are the ones who don't mind if they survive or make it out safely. They just want to go out into this strange place and see what's out there. They just want to feel something different than they've ever felt before.” He stopped and blew out a cloud of grey smoke that seemed to engulf him, his features blurring together into the fog.

Burnley listened quietly to his philosophy, only moving to tap the extra ash from her cigarette. 

Her mind sat a dark place, materialized as a small bungalow next to a murky body of water. She would sit there with a small candle flickering next to her as she rocked in her rickety chair. In the black water reflections of past memories and choices rippled about to remind her of what she had done. What she could've done. Her madness grew in twisted black vines that crept up the trees and up the small house's shingles with blooms of poison nightshade. Burnley felt trapped often, as if wherever she moved the threat of exposure to pain was inevitable. No one ever dared to trek into the dark woods and brave the thorns of her madness. However, that day, she heard the first crunch of the path being broken behind her.

And, truthfully, it scared her.

 _Is_ _this bloke really trying to get inside?_ she wondered, watching the strange man framed by smoke and fading rays of light. _Inside this hell? Doesn't he understand one wrong move could damage him beyond repair? What a foolish person . . ._

"What do you feel, anyway?" Stein continued, drawing attention back to the conversation and dragging Burnley back into reality.

"Me?" she repeated with a chuckle and rolling her eyes, slowly putting the cigarette to her lips. "Not much of anything . . ."

There was silence between the two of them, an unseen tension tearing a slow riff into the evening.

 _I'm close. So close to a glimpse inside that fabled mind of yours._ He snuck a glance at the British woman. _I just need a little peek, that's all, and then I can move on. I want to see how bad your madness really is._

"I feel the same way sometimes," Stein said casually, turning around and resting against the stone balcony as he cast his tired green eyes towards the violet sky. "There's always that void overhanging. The darkness that rips up your insides and casts a fog into your sense of morals. A call to abandon your humanity strengthens and you surrender to an empty absent god. However, people like us, Burnley, have a strong enough will to pull out of these insecurities and continue on. If normal people are lucky they only have to suffer this sensation once in their lives at the darkest tunnel down the road. But, they don't realize we struggle with that undeniable neglect of hope several times a day."

It became Burnley's turn stare back in shock, showing the most emotion since the day they met in the library. She peered at him from over her shoulder, one elbow propped up to hold her cigarette and the other resting casually on the cold stone. Her hazel eyes traced his silhouette in the now dark evening. The laughing moon overhead turned his grey hair into shining silver and reflected off his glasses. The only other light was the gentle red emitting from the tip of their cigarettes.

No one had ever come even close to describing the pain Burnley felt and here Stein just laid it all out in front of her.

"You should've been a poet," she finally said after a while. "Your science schtick is squandering thy talent. You'd be much more successful as a philosopher or a theorist not a bum of biology." She paused and blew out a skull. "That aside, you're right about it all. The darkness is inescapable at times."

 _There it is._ He sighed and glimpsed into her soul that quaked in static anxiety, his pale lips curling up into a half smirk. 

"I guess we're both quite alike."

"More than I'd like to admit," Burnley said with a reluctant nod. "But aye, we're both a couple of mad hatters."

The bell tower in town began to chime a quarter till, alerting the pair that nine o'clock approached. The British professor straightened up and took a deep breath, the cigarette she held exploding as her hand temporarily became a cannon before reverting back. 

"It's late, Chima's probably playing video games and not doing her history report. I need to get home," Burnley stated as she walked away from the doctor and towards her abandon bag.

"I'll walk you home," Stein offered, pushing off the balcony and following behind.

"That won't be necessary." 

"It's late and Death City isn't as safe as it seems."

"I can handle myself."

"You haven't been here long enough to know your way though. I can tell your sense of direction is bad in the dark."

Scooping up her satchel she decided to not answer him.

"It's because of the madness, isn't it?" he pressed, sensing her uncomfortableness from her now exposed soul.

"It's the worst at night," Burnley flat out admitted, a bit to Stein's surprise, but in reality she was too exhausted to put up another fight.

Secretly she appreciated his offer. She wasn't good with roads to begin with and her darkness made the streets all look the same. It would take her hours if she went on her own and she knew Chima was already probably worrying about where she was.

"Then it's settled. Come on, I know a shortcut," he said gently, leading the way down the steps and towards the academy's exit. "I'll get you home in no time."

"How gentlemanly," Burnley said as she rolled her eyes with a slight, but grateful, smile.

The walk through town was peaceful and quiet, the two of them mostly silent. Every once in a while Stein would point out a cafe or diner and tell Burnley about it, like whether or not their food was quality. She soon came to realize that the man nearly lived on takeout and most likely had no capability of cooking for himself. It was a miracle he remained so trim and muscular despite his frankly horrid eating habits. 

Their footsteps echoed off the cobblestones as they made their way down the mostly empty street, a few stragglers or students leaving work the only exceptions. Death City was a strange mix between eerie and tranquil at night. The sinister glow of the moon contrasted greatly with the dim street lamps flickering in the evening breeze. It wasn't particularly cold, a little chilly at most, but with only a short sleeved blouse on Burnley couldn't help feeling a bit frigid. She'd forgotten to bring her blazer with her to school that day and hadn't bothered to find a temporary substitution for the journey home. Stein immediately noticed the change when her soul trembled slightly from a sudden burst of wind. 

"Don't even _think_ about doing something so cliché," she hissed as she heard the rustling of Stein's lab coat.

"It's cold and you're shivering. I insist," he argued, one arm already out of his coat sleeve.

"I'm quite all right. I assure you that there's no need for that."

Her teeth began to chatter and Stein gave her a disapproving look. Ignoring her protests he draped his coat around her shoulders and then strode forward before Burnley could stop him. His long legs carried him out of her reach quickly and he shoved his hands into the pockets of his pants, a fresh cigarette burning on low between his lips. Having no other option Burnley shrugged on the coat and pulled it tightly around herself, the bottom nearly dragging on the ground. She found the material warm, much more comfortable than it appeared, and effectively kept out the wind. She understood now why Stein was rarely without it. 

It smelled like him. A strong tantalizing mix of smoke, cloves, and coffee as black as the night sky. Without realizing it she took a deep breath, inhaling the scent and feeling a calmness soothe her itching mind and wipe away a smudge of darkness.

Glancing up she watched Stein walk on ahead, her eyes trained on his back. Built strong with broad shoulders and thick arms it seemed an athletic profession would be more suited for him than a scientist. Reaching up he cranked the enormous screw protruding from his head, the sound traveling back to Burnley. Once more she wondered how on earth he managed to embed it into his skull without dying and also _when._  

_Has he had that bolt since childhood or is it newer?_

Soon the streets became familiar to Burnley and she saw the lights of her small home. From the living room window, she could see Chima sitting on the couch with legs crossed, her gaze trained on the TV. Her thumbs raced over the game controller in her hands and her eyes flickered rapidly in the only light in the dark room. With suspicions confirmed the woman groaned, mourning the loss of her daughter's educational motivation. 

"Here we are," Stein said with a grin, surveying the house and pushing up his glasses in thought, "and in no time at all."

"Bravo . . ." Burnley returned with a halfhearted nod, walking towards the steps.

She stopped, realizing she was still wearing his coat, and turned around. She hesitated before taking it off. In a way, she didn't want to. Burnley had grown comfortable in the smell and inviting warmth. 

"Here's this back," she muttered, holding out the lab coat to Stein. "Sorry to be a bother," Burnley added, keeping her face hidden from sight to mask her disappointment.

"It was no trouble at all. I'm glad I could help. There’s a lot of creeps in Death City," Stein pointed out as he reached for his jacket.

"And you're one of them," Burnley retorted with a huff.

For a split second their hands touched and electricity rippled through them both. A bond suddenly exploded between the two and a feeling of power rose to incredible capacities. A beacon of orange and blue light flashed up into the cloudless night, only visible to those with the power to see souls. Wind whipped around the two meisters, tossing their hair and clothes in wild directions as they stood in contact. Fearfully, Burnley and Stein jumped away from each other, eyes wide with confusion. The entire account took place for only a moment.

 _Did we just resonate?_ they both asked themselves frantically, trying to decipher what had just happened.

"Are you all right?" Stein demanded as they caught their breath and stared at each other.

"Possibly," Burnley returned in a shaky voice feeling very drained. "What the bloody _hell_ was _that_?"

"I'm trying to work that out myself," the professor mumbled as he studied his hand that had come in contact with hers.

It appeared fine, nothing different about it at all. It'd almost been as if she'd drawn out his soul force and tried to sync it with her own. Had it been the madness that latched onto him? He hadn't felt any more than usual . . . So what on earth created such a tremendous force like that?

"Thy soul looks normal," Burnley commented, assessing Stein's rather massive energy projection. "There doesn't appear to be any changes. Other than that fact it's trembling. Whatever that was took a lot out of both of us."

"I'll go home to my lab and run some tests,” Stein said with a nod, slipping into his coat and pocketing his hands. "It might be nothing but it's worth a shot. I'll contact Lord Death as well. There may be some witch activity in the area causing a disturbance . . ." He paused, glancing at the surrounding and shadows plaguing the street. "You better go inside. Might be something nearby."

"It sounds like you're worried about me," Burnley returned with a chuckle, tucking an auburn curl behind her ear and shifting her bag on her shoulder.

"Of course I am. You're my friend."

The response had been instant, not an inch of hesitation anywhere in his tone. It caught Burnley off guard. It wasn't every day she was called someone's friend other than Chima. 

She wasn't really the type . . . 

With a bit of blush on her cheeks, some from embarrassment and the rest from the evening chill, she turned away and hurried up the steps to her house. She could feel Stein watching her as she fumbled for her key and unlocked the door.

 _I should say something,_ she thought, turning the doorknob and opening the door with a creak. _He was grand enough to escort me from the school and lend me his coat. Also since we're, I suppose, friends . . . I should do something 'friendly'._

Burnley didn't have much experience in the _friendship_ department. The only friends she ever had were her parents and Chima. Other than that she was alone.

“Well, goodnight, Burnley," Stein called from the sidewalk, making her jump and almost drop her keys. "Get some sleep!"

"W-wait!" she stuttered, her voice shaking with nervousness as she spun around to face him. "Hold on!"

"Yeah?" he returned, his eyes lazy and relaxed behind his glasses as he stopped in mid-step.

Burnley took a deep breath and stood up straight in the light pouring out from inside the house. Her hazel eyes fixed themselves on the man in front of her.

"Thank you for taking care of me tonight," she began sincerely. "I really appreciate it."

"Oh, you're welcome," he said with a smile, cranking his screw once.

Nodding Burnley turned back around and went into the house. As she closed the door she stopped and looked out one last time.

"Goodnight, _Stein,_ " she said and then disappeared into her home, leaving him speechless in the dark.

 

}{

 

**Friday, September 24th**

**9:08 P.M.**

 

"Welcome home," Chima greeted between clenched teeth as she fought off a particularly nasty troll.

"Did you do thy homework?" was Burnley's automatic response.

"It's not due 'til Monday. Cut me some slack, teach," the redhead said with a giggle, setting off an explosion in the enemy's camp. "Let a kid enjoy her Friday night.”

"Fine, fine. But you'd better not be putting it off. You know I don't accept late fettle."

"Whatevs . . ."

Walking down the hall and into the kitchen Burnley tossed her bag on the island counter before opening the fridge.

"Have you eaten?" she called over her shoulder to Chima above the sound of gunfire.

"Yeah, the guys and I went to the Deathbucks after school! I brought you back a grilled cheese. It's in the fridge. Did you?" 

"Not yet, thank you," she returned seeing the small carryout box in the far corner with the familiar skull logo.

Snatching it up she dumped the contents on a ceramic plate and held it in her palm. Her hand began to shift and a metal plate slid out from her wrist. Easily balancing the sandwich as she gradually heated it up, Burnley poured herself a glass of milk. Once her food was hot she returned her hand to normal and trudged down the hall to rejoin Chima in the living room.

"You find it?" the redhead asked as Burnley sat down in the corner snugly in her armchair. 

"Aye," she said and nodded, taking a large bite out of the sandwich. 

It was rich and creamy, toasted just right. The food heated the meister's insides and made her feel warm again, erasing the evening chill that had racked her body.

"What took you so long?" Chima inquired, firing off a machine gun at a helicopter. "You're never this late."

She was dressed in her pajamas: a pink zip-up sweatshirt, white cotton shorts, and grey knee socks. Her hair was slightly damp and smelled like lavender, still drying off from her shower she took earlier that evening.

"I lost track of time."

"You smell like smoke. Were you with Professor Stein?"

The milk in Burnley's mouth spurted out just as a string of confetti shot from her fingertips. She choked and coughed, trying to recover from the shock of the accusation.

"W-what? Nah! I just had some papers to grade . . . Don't be daft!" Burnley snapped, face red.

"You smell like cloves too. Professor Stein is the only person at the D.W.M.A. who smokes clove cigarettes," Chima reasoned, pausing her game to pick sparkles and ribbons now tangled in her hair. "Marie, Stein's old weapon, sends them from Oceania with the care packages she makes for him and other students. Crona told me."

That shut her up.

Realizing there was no other way to back out Burnley sighed, munching half-heartedly on her grilled cheese.

"Fine, you're right, I was with Dr. Stein. However, nothing happened! We just talked for a bit on the roof and then he walked me home because it was dark."

"Aw, how sweet!" her daughter squealed, plucking a green confetti star off of Ravu the skull. "So are you guys cool now?"

"Cool?"

“Well, you two seemed to argue a lot . . . mostly you, Burnie. Professor Stein just wants to understand you. He asks about you often and wants to know what he can do to help. He figured you were having trouble adjusting to Death City or America for that matter. I heard he's suffered a lot from insanity and dealing with problems so I think he wants help with your um . . . 'spits'. I'm glad you finally gave him a chance though," Chima said as she smiled and resumed her game. "He might be weird and kind of intimidating but Stein's a really kind person."

Burnley sat and watched her, the words sinking in. She thought back to how caring and enjoyable his personality was that evening. About all the things they had talked about.

 _Perhaps I didn't give him a fair go,_ she mused, finishing the rest of her dinner. _Sure he's nosy, a bit loony, and a borderline stalker. However, we're very much in the same boat. Chima's right, I need to accept him . . ._

"Wait a second," Chima interrupted her thoughts. "You said he walked you home, right?" 

"Aye, what of it?"

She stopped the game and turned to face her with a curious expression.

"How did he know where we live?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> An interesting and fun chapter to write for sure. The scene on the balcony and the walk home has always been one of my favorites. Like I said at the beginning I will be updating every two weeks. See you again soon!
> 
> }{
> 
> What is this bond between Stein and Burnley? What will Chima say? How did Stein know where they lived?? Find out next time!


	3. The Unreliable and Incredibly Risky Gamble Between Meisters and Weapons - You can eat gingerbread for breakfast?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone! Back with chapter three now! Hope everyone is having a good November and with Thanksgiving coming up I thought a family centered chapter would be appropriate. I will be back in two weeks with the next chapter until then have a good holiday and eat lots of food (if you celebrate it)!

**Saturday, September 25th**

**6:29 A.M.**

 

Burnley woke up to knocking.

She sat up in her black circle bed that vaguely resembled a nest with the pillows and blankets piled about it. Her auburn hair was wild with curls, sticking off her head like a miniature afro. With glassy hazel eyes, she squinted at the clock: 6:30. Groaning and grumbling she crawled out of her den before landing with a plop on the ground. As the knocking grew impatient she shuffled across the floor, down the steps, and yawned as she reached the entrance. She yanked open the door, morning drowsiness adding to her already grumpy personality, and glared out into the blinding sunrise.

"I've found something," Dr. Stein greeted, a cup of Deathbucks coffee in each hand that leaked small skulls of steam into the brisk morning air.

"What?" Burnley returned, squinting at the visitor and rubbing her arms. "The coffee shop?"

She was surprised to see Stein that early in the morning and in such an outfit no less. The man had shed his usual lab coat, Burnley had come to love, and presently dressed in a charcoal sweatshirt with white stitches trailing across the seams or various other places. His black pants and boots still remained, keeping a sense of normality to the drastic outfit change. As he looked down at the sleepy, obviously just woken up, woman his glasses lost their glint.

"No, I found something in my research on the soul reaction that occurred last night," Stein elaborated.

Burnley was dressed very out of character from her usual self. Her feet were bare to reveal black-painted toenails and her hair crazier than normal. A worn pair of black briefs with tiny white mountains hung loosely on her wide hips while a white muscle shirt hugged her torso, outlining her slightly chubby stomach. As she stared at him in the breezy morning Stein immediately noticed something.

"You came to my home at 6: 30 A.M. to tell me about some _research_?" Burnley grumbled, eyebrows creasing and eyes narrowing even further to outline the bags beneath them.

"You're not wearing a bra."

"Poetic observation," she returned, snatching up the coffee offered to her by the doctor on her porch. "I don't wear one while I sleep nor do I intend to put one on today if I don't have to . . ."

She took a long sip, surprised by the nice spiced taste. With Stein she had expected it to be just black and flavorless, however, he'd actually taken the time to order something she liked.

“Chai latte," he answered for her, taking a drink of his own beverage. “Can I come in?"

 _How did he know that's one of my favorites?_ she wondered a bit concerned.

"Rather you not but I'm cold myself," Burnley said, tucking a stray curl behind her ear. "I suppose you can."

Stepping out of the way she let the strange man into her home, watching him carefully step into the threshold. With a crank of his screw, he looked around, observing the home with amusement.

 _Small but quaint with comfortable qualities. There's a lot of repairs that need to be seen to but it's the best they both can afford on a teacher's pension,_ Stein thought glancing about.

"I figured as much," he said with a smirk, walking along the corridor pleasantly.

"What was that?" Burnley snapped from behind him.

"Nothing, just observing. Your house is quite cute."

"I'm aware."

Entering the kitchen Stein and Burnley sat down across from each other at the small table stationed in the right corner of the room next to the window. The sunrise cast warm golden light in the otherwise dim area. All along the edge of the window sill sat several small potted plants: succulents, cacti, and other terrariums of different colors or variation. Upon further inspection of the remainder of the room, Stein realized many other plants various dotted the surfaces or hung down from the ceiling.

"So what's this about?" Burnley inquired, leaning back in her chair and sipping her drink. "What'd you find about that freak accident last night?"

"Do you like plants?" Stein asked nonchalantly.

She gave him a surprised look before blushing slightly and stealing glances at her little pots. Following her gaze the other teacher noticed tiny notes on brightly colored paper, bearing names, stuck neatly in each of the plants' soil.

 _She even named them,_ he thought with a smile, glancing down at his drink. _How surprisingly domestic._

"Aye, I do," Burnley mumbled, still flustered. "It's a little hobby of mine. I like taking care of them . . . Why? Do you have any other hobbies other than dissecting, stalking, and smoking?"

Stein looked up from his hot beverage: a caramel macchiato with three full shots of espresso. His drink seemed unlike his personality, then again, not many knew about his very small sweet tooth that was the result of Spirit's influence. Growing up, when they were roommates and partners together, Spirit would tend to make the morning coffee for the both of them and always added some sort of chocolate or sugary substance. The redhead would claim the chocolate was a 'good thing' for young Stein and 'put some meat on his bones’. Normally the said meister would be too tired to protest.

"Stalking?" He raised a silver brow. "I don't believe that's one of my personal hobbies."

"Really now," Burnley huffed, sitting down her cup and crossing her arms in skepticism. "Explain how you knew where I lived despite never learning my address?"

"Oh, that!" Stein returned with a chuckle, giving his screw a turn and leaning back in his chair. "Lord Death gave me that information. How am I supposed to do my job and keep an eye on you if I don't even know where your house is?”

There was a beat of silence.

"What are you going on about?"

"Lord Death instructed me to observe and watch over your actions due to your problem with madness," Stein explained, his glasses losing their glare and reveal his olive eyes clearly. "It's kind of ironic, you see, because that was my last partner's job. They were told to keep tabs on me during the Kishin outbreak to make sure I kept my head on straight.” He chuckled again with one more crank. "So the jobs are reversed now."

 _He's been told to look after me?_ Burnley stared back, a bit of annoyance creeping up into her face. _I don't need child minding, especially by some loon like him! If anyone needs minded it'd be him for sure! Oh, I'm going to have a chatta with Lord Death come Monday . . ._

"By the way, you're about to have an attack soon, aren't you?" Stein pointed out. "A few weeks or fewer tops, correct?”

"Aye, b-but how did you know?" she stammered back confused.

Sitting his coffee aside Stein reached into the pocket of his hoodie and pulled out a folded packet of paper. Laying in down he smoothed it out onto the table for Burnley to see, the official stamp of the D.W.M.A. stared back at her from in between a picture of her mother and one of her father.

Burnley was, in a lot of cases literally, a mix of her parents. She had her father’s auburn hair and fair skin while she lacked his dark blue eyes and freckles. On the other hand, she inherited her hazel eyes from her mother as well as her curls but not the long blonde hair.

She swallowed dryly, a flood of anxiety passing through, and she gripped her forearm tightly over her scars.

"Where did you get that? More importantly, _why_ do you have it?" Burnley asked, tearing her eyes away from her parents' stares and gazing hesitantly at the man across from her.

"I'm a person of science and research with endless devotion to finding answers. Your records were easy enough to access with a well-placed phone call and inquiry from Lord Death himself.” Stein shrugged, adjusting his glasses and leaning forward. "Your father, Marcus, is a utility meister and your mother, Elia, is an autonomous, Gatling gun weapon. Both have strong souls and nimble control however you inherited incredibly keen Soul Perception from Marcus."

"I'm aware, aye," Burnley returned with a nod. "What of it?"

"Soul Perception is a useful tool for both everyday life as well as battle. Myself capable of the ability as you know also. Yet, there are complications to such a powerful trait. The most dangerous and important being a higher sensitivity to madness."

She shifted in her seat, the information still nothing new however in her mind her inner demons lurched.

 ** _You know already,_** the voice from the pond inside her consciousness hissed, **_you know. That's why you had to leave poor mummy and daddy. You couldn't stand to let them see. See what your terrible abilities were! You couldn't do anything!_**

"Burnley? Are you all right?"

She looked up from her shaking grip to find Stein staring down at her. He'd stood up and now leaned over the table in a hover of tension with hand outstretched as if he'd been about to shake her. His olive eyes peered at her from behind his thick glasses, trying to read her strange expression.

 _It's like she'd been in a whole other place,_ he observed her body language and reflected on her spaced actions from before. _Is it the madness or an effect from last night?_

“Apologizes." Burnley shivered, taking a trembling hand and grabbing her latte. "I appear to be still trying to wake from sleep. Getting up at 6:30 A.M. has its complications, does it not?" She frowned. "Take a seat, professor, or have you finished? If you have I'm incredibly disappointed in thee for all you've provided is information I've known prior. Unless you have a theory about the event from last night I'd like to escort you out before Chima awakes," Burnley finished, eager for him to leave so she could start her, now much too early, day.

"I see," he returned with a nod, slouching forward into his chair and cranking his screw twice with loud clicks. “Well, I'll get right to it then. I believe the happening from the previous evening was a bond linked to between our levels of wavelength and, bluntly, a soul resonance."

Outside the kitchen window, the sound of wind chimes filled the silence that had befallen the pair. Burnley sat down her cup and looked out into the sunrise, that filled the room with golden light and warmth, to admire the beautiful noise. The wind chimes, thin silver pipes and tiny dragon charms, were a result of Chima's handiwork from an art workshop she attended at the hospital while Burnley recovered. They'd been a gift to her, a thank you from the young girl for giving her a new chance at life, that Burnley accepted and cherished. Once more, the woman appreciated the gentle noise they offered in that moment of uncertainty.

"Soul resonance?" she repeated with a frown, giving Stein a skeptical look. "That phenomenon is only possible between a meister and a weapon."

"True," he said and nodded with a slight smirk as he rested a cheek lazily in his open palm, "and you're a hybrid. You have the blood of both coursing through your veins from your parents. From your mother, you have the capabilities of her weaponry but lack full transformation resulting in only minor transitions from pinpointed wavelength that you've honed and trained over the years. Now your father's utility strength is in the ability to match differing wavelengths and or link with multiple weapons, which is exactly what you can do since you've inherited the process. However, your ability to use and access the weapon blood in you, as I've already explained, derives solely through your advanced meister power along with supreme control over wavelength which is where the majority of your power rests in. Therefore, this renders your weapon abilities to a very minor percent and so the power to create, as well as fire, your cannons rests in wavelength."

"This can't be happening.” Burnley shook her head and leaned away from the professor. "I've never had any problems like this! I've fooled around with other meister's before and not once did an explosion blow up in my face!"

"Now that'd be my fault," Stein began, putting the offhand comment about 'fooling around with other meister's' into the back of his head. "Due to both of our expert handling and flexible wavelength capabilities, a link of resonance initially became easy to establish. You, Burnley, as both a weapon and meister, have a remarkable capability to resonate with other weapons or even meisters. However, due to the fact that you never can fully transform into a weapon form, a stunted bond arises whenever another meister attempts to resonate with you.

The stunted bond allows both the fellow meister and yourself to have battle capabilities but it only lets one or the other have absolute control over the opposites wavelength. This can let the primary meister access the secondary meister's strength or power," Stein took a long swig of his coffee and then continued. "In the case of our strange occurrence last night, a stunted bond did emerge. Only this time another prominent underlying factor upset and ignited the bond into a complete soul resonance link: madness."

"This is getting absurd.” Burnley sighed and followed his notation of taking a lengthy sip. "Madness, really? You can't be serious."

"No, it's true. I was up till four trying to work everything out," he said with a grin.

For the first time that morning Burnley really looked at Stein. The bags beneath his eyes rivaled her own in deep dark shades of black and purple making the green of his irises dull. It seemed that the rising sun's light worked against him as the brightness clarified just how pale he actually was. His veins, tangles of blue and purple, stood out like rivers on a map as they trailed across his body. He sighed, his shoulders tense and bulging from knots of stress that needed to be rubbed out, and cranked his screw that did nearly nothing to clear the tiredness from his eyes. Stein's sweatshirt smelled clean, fresh like he'd just washed it, and Burnley realized he hadn't even smoked yet this morning.

_He sure made an effort for me . . ._

"The madness, I've mentioned, stems from three adjourning factors which are your inherent Soul Perception, as well as mental state, no offense, and the transference of Chima's power when she ripped your soul. That's where your higher sensitivity to madness comes in. The biggest problem, of the three, lies within the predicament of your torn soul that is creating a riff between stability and insanity.

The openness and free flowing of power throughout the soul causes delayed episodes of madness, which are your episodes or 'spits'," Stein quoted, "as you call them. If your soul is healed, or bridged, you could fully delve into complete insanity with little hope of improved conscious _or_ ," he theorized quickly as Burnley opened her mouth to voice an opinion, "have the chance to fight and overtake the madness completely with both options at high-risk level. So, in retrospect, we've made something a bit beyond normal power and larger than just a soul resonance. Burnley, that bond last night was a fundamental madness fusion," Stein finished grinning with his olive eyes brimming with utmost curiosity.

"You're a bit too worked up over this," she pointed out, secretly very nervous about what they'd created.

 _What new hell am I going to release into this world?_ Burnley wondered as she took several rapid sips of her nearly finished latte. _I've read about 'madness fusion's and always they are chaotic. It never ends well for the users, nearly all of them end up completely infused. Especially those who suffer from it already or struggle with its powerful hold . . . He,_ she paused and stole a glance at Stein before admiring her hands gripping her cup tightly, _might get hurt._

"So what does this mean for us?" Burnley spoke up and stared at him determinedly, shifting her focus. "For the D.W.M.A. and everyone else?"

 _She's worried about Chima_ , Stein noticed in her body language.

"Well," he turned his screw, "the link, as I said, is a fundamental madness fusion and perhaps possesses the capability to allow you a complete transformation. But, Burnley, you might lose all sane notions of yourself resulting in a hollow weapon form with your subconscious locked inside."

"And you?"

"What?" he returned, puzzled and cocking his head.

Across the table Burnley continued to stare at him with fierce determination and intent processing, her hazel eyes sharp.

"And you?" she repeated, leaning closer. "What would the effect be on thee if we resonated completely?"

A burst of laughter escaped from his lips before he could stop it, startling Burnley so much she jumped. His chest shook as he laughed, the sound resonating through the sunlit room, and a minute passed before he regained control of his self.

"What the bloody hell's so funny?" Burnley snapped, slapping the table with her free hand.

"Sorry," Stein apologized as he chuckled, waving in nonchalance, “sorry. I didn't mean to startle you like that. It's just . . . it's been a while since anybody's really asked something like that. All the others just assume I'll be fine or handle myself. My last partner, I mentioned before, Marie always did her best to make sure what I was getting into would be safe but she moved back to Oceania four months ago. You caught me off guard that's all."

Burnley felt a twinge of sympathy for the meister and frowned.

 _He's been alone a long time to be not used to the feelings of concern,_ she noted and drew conclusions. _Longer than just a few months. I wonder what his life before the D.W.M.A. was like and what happened to affect him so much?_

"Back on topic," Stein interrupted her thoughts and cranked the protruding screw from his skull twice. “The effect on me could either be complete madness or a fusion with you that could allow us extreme power. There is another possibility that a resonance link might be able to form giving us the ability to use our madness to an advantage, even if our conscious is unpredictable meaning we either retain sanity as well as control or succumbed to it. Either way, during the soul resonance link, we could work separately with chosen weapons of our own or continue as a Meister partner team by relying on each other's combined power."

Stein paused and let out a deep sigh before shrugging.

"Nevertheless, all of this is theoretical. The link and bond created between us is incredibly experimental, unknown, dangerous, and a complete gamble only to be used in life or death situations."

"Well," Burnley huffed in exhaustion and ran a hand through her curly hair only to mess it up even further, "at least now we have a possible idea and answer to what happened last night. If anything that's a relief . . . What's Lord Death's input on the matter?"

"He remains cautious but open to the prospect of further investigation or experimentation. It's up to you, of course, but if you're interested in studying the bond with me that'd be great," Stein said and smiled, curiosity flickering strongly behind his gleaming glasses.

"I'll take it under consideration," Burnley returned with a slow nod, suppressing a shudder. "Right now, however, I just want to ponder all this new information. Turn it about and try to understand it thyself."

"Perfectly reasonable," he agreed a bit bummed over the fact he won't be allowed to experiment right away but pushing that out of his mind. "By the way, I'm curious."

"Aye, I'm aware.” Burnley narrowed her eyes in a tired way.

"Ha, no, I mean about something from earlier. Why did you jump right in and ask about the link's effect on me instead of simply waiting for me to explain it later?"

She raised an eyebrow at him and sat back in her chair. 

"I wanted to know if thee would be sound if something happened and we did perform the bond fully in the future."

"So you were worried about me?" Stein inquired with a chuckle.

"Of course I am. You’re my friend," Burnley finished sternly, her hazel eyes staring into his.

A second past between the two before Stein burst into laughter and even Burnley smiled, allowing a small laugh of her own to escape her lips. The two thought back to the same words he'd said exactly to her the night before and couldn't help but chuckle at the absurd intensity of the situation.

 _So she really does have a sense of humor,_ Stein mused, watching her laugh and smile for the first time ever. _Burnley just needs to unwind it seems. Her intensity is just a front to keep people at bay. I guess on the inside she's actually a light-hearted person._

 _Don't suppose he's all that bad._ Burnley smiled and glanced out the window as they giggled. _Perhaps we'll get along quite nicely?_

Just then from around the corner, amidst the pair's laughter, Chima sleepily trudged into the kitchen from the hall awoken by the conversation. With a blanket from her bed wrapped around herself and her giant, pink, fluffy bunny slippers on her feet she looked very comedic in her half asleep zombie-walk daze. Yawning, and adjusting her headband with Ravu the skull so it wouldn't fall out of her horrible bed head, she blinked gingerly just in time to take in the scene in front of her. In her new home's kitchen was none other than Professor Stein sitting at the table as he shared coffee with Burnley and laughed in pleasant conversation. Staring in disbelief at the two Chima noticed something that she'd never forget till her dying day.

Burnley was _laughing_ and _smiling_.

The young girl's jaw dropped and her blanket fell to the floor with a plop. Burnley snapped in the direction of the sudden noise, her eyes locking with Chima's shocked gaze.

“C-Chima!" she stuttered and sat up, immediately at attention. "Good morning! I-I didn't know thee was awake . . . " she trailed off nervously as she stole a glance at Stein.

"Nah, I just got up," Chima returned, still staring at her. "Heard voices and just wanted to know what was going on down here."

 _She was smiling. I saw it! I haven't seen her do that in months!_ the red-headed girl thought eagerly, keeping it to herself. _That's amazing!_

"Sorry, I didn't mean to wake you," Burnley apologized. "I should've been quieter, dear."

"Nah, it's cool.” Chima shrugged. "Oh um, hi, Professor Stein," she added, pretending to be more shocked and confused about him than Burnley's behavior, with an awkward wave.

"Morning, Chima," he said as he raised his empty Deathbucks cup in her direction.

A full minute of silence passed between them as the young student continued to look strangely at Stein and Burnley.

"So, why are ya here so early?" Chima finally broke and bluntly began firing questions at her professor. "Are you here visiting Burnie? Because, if you are, I'm pretty sure that could've waited 'til after lunch or something. Or if you wanted to bring her coffee so badly couldn't that have also waited 'til, like, nine or ten when _normal_ people get up on Saturday?"

"No! No, you got it all wrong!" Burley corrected, flushing in embarrassment at what she implied and standing up. "That's not what’s—”

"I came by to discuss some D.W.M.A business with her that wasn't addressed yesterday," Stein cut in with a crank of his screw.

"At 7:30?" Chima replied skeptically and not buying it. "Why are you awake?"

"Chima!" Burnley scolded.

"What? It's a genuine question. I'm concerned about his sleeping patterns!"

"Never mind," Burnley hushed her as she stood up abruptly and walked over to her side, "it doesn't matter. Dr. Stein is quite finished and was just on his way out. Chima, go brush your teeth and I'll start gettin—”

"You're leaving!?" Chima groaned in disappointment, spinning around in a flurry to face her professor. "Why!? Come on don't go yet. I just got up!"

"Heh, well," Stein said with a chuckle, giving his screw a crank, "it seems that Burnley wants to start her day and I wouldn't want to get in the way of that."

The said woman nodded in approval, anxious for the other to leave immediately.

"Oh please stay!" Chima begged, grabbing his free hand and flashing large, brown puppy-dog eyes in his direction. "It's Saturday! We ain't doing anything and neither are you I bet. Besides, Burnie makes a big breakfast and there's always extra! She makes bacon, eggs, and homemade gingerbread!"

"Gingerbread?" Stein repeated, raising a silver eyebrow and looking up at Burnley.

"It's a family recipe and old breakfast tradition," she grumbled back and crossed her arms over her chest. "We call it 'parkin'."

"So you can stay?" Chima asked, her lips thrusting out into a pout as she gave Stein one last dose of puppy-dog eyes.

He blinked, glancing from the young girl to her irritable guardian who looked like she was trying to assess how easily she could toss him out the window without knocking over her plants. Finally, with a sigh, he gave into Chima's pleading face, that has caught many others before, and nodded sheepishly with a smile.

“All right, if you want me to so badly I'll stay for a little while. I've got nothing going on right now and I'll admit, I haven't eaten lately . . . Is it okay if I hang around, Burnley?" Stein asked cautiously, his glasses losing their glare.

Chima whipped around and stared longingly at her mother, putting on all her charm. Burnley shifted uncomfortably under the girl's gaze and tried to avoid the eyes that have gotten Chima out of trouble before.

 _I want him out, he's already caused enough trouble for one day and exhausted me, but Chima really likes him . . ._ she mused, staring at the pair waiting for her decision. _I heard what he said, that he hasn't eaten in a while, and I know he doesn't have anyone else. Besides, Chima only has me as well and needs other company once in a while if she hopes to grow up decent. Christ, I can't believe I'm doing this._

"Fine, he can stay," Burnley agreed before turning away to start gathering supplies for breakfast, "but he's your responsibility!"

"Oh thank you, Burnie, yes!" Chima said as she nodded gratefully, all smiles and laughs. "I'll take good care of him. I promise!"

"You two talk as if I'm some pet," Stein pointed out in disapproval.

"Aye, you're a stray that wandered into my home this morning," Burnley agreed, reaching down a pan from the cupboard, "and it's _Burnley_ , not _Burnie_!"

"Can I help with anything?" he inquired, standing up and tossing their empty cups into the nearby trash can. "I'm already staying so I should offer to do something."

"You? Ha!" Burnley scoffed and rolled her eyes, sitting the spices down on the island bar. "No thanks. I doubt you'd be able to be of much assistance."

 _This man lives on takeout. I bet he doesn't even know what a spatula is,_ Burnley thought, _let alone cook._

"It's okay, professor," Chima reassured, latching onto his hand and tugging him towards the hall, "Burnie normally does all the cooking herself and doesn't like others to help her out. Come with me. I'll show ya what my job is while she gets breakfast ready!"

And before Stein could protest she dragged him out of the room, giving him just enough time to shoot Burnley a confused expression and scoop up the blanket Chima had left behind.

 

}{

 

**Saturday, September 25th**

**8:23 A.M.**

 

Sitting in the living room Stein sat next to Chima on the sofa watching Saturday morning cartoons. Distantly in the kitchen, the sounds of cooking utensils clattering and shuffling could be heard over the television. A sweet, warm smell steadily had begun to fill the house from Burnley's breakfast preparations.

All of it was strange to Stein.

It'd been nearly a year since someone had cooked him breakfast and even longer before. Marie, when she'd been living temporarily with Stein, had many times taken the liberty of cooking despite his protests and Spirit, when they were young and partners, would also fumble through breakfast just to practice his skills to impress unimpressed women. Even so, Stein felt comfortable in the environment and sat cozily in the seat while staring at the T.V. despite the surreal scenario.

"Professor?"

"Yes, Chima?"

"What're ya really doing here?"

He turned away from the show about two brothers and faced the redhead sitting next to him. Her large eyes were stern, full of worry and concern that Stein easily could understand. He sighed, cranked his screw, and turned to face her.

"Honestly I'm here because I've been assigned by Lord Death to keep an eye on Burnley," he relaid truthfully and without breaking eye contact.

_No need to hide it from her. She does have a part in this._

"Because of the 'spits'?" Chima asked.

"Yes, that's one reason," he said and nodded. "The rest of my task is classified however I'll let you know one other thing."

That sparked her curiosity.

"What is it?"

"I'm also here because I'm in the middle of doing an experiment between Burnley and myself. It's completely safe and I'm not dissecting anyone if you're thinking that's the nature of it. I know you've heard the rumors about me but I'd never harm your . . . um," he struggled to find the right word.

"Mom," Chima proudly promoted.

"Right," Stein returned with a smile, "your mom."

There was a pause and the silence was filled by the T.V. announcer reminding everyone they were back from the commercial break.

"Thank you," Chima said in a small voice as she brought her legs up and folded them neatly in front of her. "It's nice to have someone other than myself keeping an eye on Burnie."

"It's no trouble," Stein said and waved away. "I enjoy her presence, and yours of course, and this is unexpectedly nice. I haven't had time like this with friends in a while."

"Have you ever had Saturday mornings like this growing up? Cartoons and homemade breakfast with the rest of the day ahead of you?" Chima asked excitedly, wanting to know more about her mysterious professor.

Stein frowned and twisted his screw to disperse thoughts from his head he didn't need to think about. He really didn't want to see those memories.

"No," he replied after a minute, brushing aside his past. "I didn't ever do things like this. I've lived alone for most of my life."

Now Chima was quiet as she pictured her own self only a year or so ago running rampant through the streets without a family. Then she pictured Stein at that age as a lonely boy, too strange for friends, and living in an empty home. Chima made a bold move and scooted closer to Stein, placing herself against his side.

"I'm sorry to hear that. You're missing out!" She smiled, brandishing to the television and resting her head against his shoulder.

"I hardly can see what I'm missing about a pair of brothers, a platypus who's color goes against nature, and a summer vacation that defies the laws of physics," Stein pointed out.

Chima laughed and he couldn't help but chuckle along with her.

Around the corner, Burnley leaned against the wall out of sight watching and listening to the odd pair. She crossed her arms, spatula in hand, and bit her lip. She didn't like how friendly Stein already was becoming with her daughter and that Chima was so close to him. She liked Stein, they were friends, but she was protective of Chima and her tiny family's boundaries. What's more, what Stein had said about himself bothered her and made her feel . . . what was it again?

_Oh, right, guilt._

"Just enjoy the show," Chima chided with a giggle, "and if you want to have someone to spend Saturdays with sometime then you can with my family."

"Chima, don't invite people over without permission!" Burnley quickly intervened and stepped into the room before Stein could speak up. "Now wash up both of you! Food's up!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A heartwarming chapter for sure with lots of information. We got to see into Burnley's life a little with a peek at her family and her madness. Let me know if you have any questions! Like I said I will be back in two weeks with the next chapter. See you later!
> 
> }{
> 
> What does Chima really think about Stein and Burnley's newfound friendship? Is Stein really comfortable being a part of a family for the first time? Will someone find out about his early morning visit? Find out next time!


	4. Scheming, Dreaming, and Teaming - Who will be victorious and who will be defeated?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi guys! Hope everyone (if you participated) had a good Thanksgiving! For me it was a great one this year! I'm back with chapter four of this story and had a good time writing it! I'll be back in December with the next chapter and it might be a little late with finals coming up so sorry about that. Wish me luck! Anyway, enjoy this new chapter!

 

**Saturday, September 25th**

**11:15 A.M.**

 

"So what do you guys think of Chima and Professor Reid?" Maka asked as the group walked to Chima's house to pick her up for basketball.

"I like Chima," Crona barely said in a half whisper.

"I think she's great! Real spunky and fun," Soul said as he smiled a toothy grin, catching the beat-up ball his best friend had just passed him.

"Yeah, she's a pretty big star and her stories are great," Black Star agreed.

The group waited quietly.

"But she's not as biG A STAR AS ME, HA!" he finished loudly earning a whack from his partner.

"I think we can all agree Chi's cool but what about her mom?" Liz put in, rubbing her arms in skepticism.

"I don't know what to think of her," Maka answered honestly. "Professor Reid's a really interesting person, just plain different. She's not bad though."

"Definitely not," Kid said in agreement. "Her knowledge is extensive and her power is immense. Chima likes her and it's evident Professor Reid is very kind."

"At least they seem like a semi-normal family," Soul said as they reached their house.

"Normal as they can be," Maka corrected.

"Yeah, Burn and Chi sure are odd!" Patty said and laughed.

"You don't have much room to talk, sis," Liz reminded.

Maka, apparently the most responsible at the time, pushed past the laughing sister and her counterpart to knock on the door. The group waited for Burnley to open the door after rapping on it twice and collapsed to the ground when it swung open.

Stein stood there in a hoodie and a completely relaxed expression on his face as he blinked down at the children scattered across the stoop.

"Oh, hey kids," he greeted nonchalantly with a little wave. "Chima should be ready in a second. _Chima_ ," he called over his left shoulder towards the stairs, "your friends are here!"

"I'll be there in a second!" they heard her shout back over the rummaging of boxes.

"Stein, what's all the yelling? Who's there?" Burnley snapped from inside the house.

"Just Maka and the others," Stein answered over right shoulder. "Nothing to worry about, Burnley."

Outside on the front porch the group of young teens were about to explode. Everything about the situation was strangely domestic and calm as if that sort of thing happened each day. They were stunned, confused, and above all embarrassed because why was Professor Stein at Burnley's house that early in the morning?

 _What if he stayed the night?_ Maka wondered incredulously and blushing fiercely.

Next to her Soul thought the same thing and single drop of blood dripped from his nose.

“Hey, guys!" Chima greeted from behind Stein as she stomped down the stairs in red basketball shoes and shorts with a baggy white shirt. "Sorry I took so long I couldn't find my shoes. Thanks, Professor Stein! I'll see you later! Bye, Burnie!" she called, rushing past the tall older man.

"Have fun," Stein said after her with a wave just as Burnley joined him at his side wearing black sweatpants and a ‘Property of the D.W.M.A’ pull over.

"Be safe," Burnley chided as well with her arms crossed. "Watch out for creeps."

"I will!" Chima smiled brightly and turned to her speechless friends. "Come on guys."

Some swallowed, some blinked, and Kid fainted gracefully into Liz's expecting arms. She figured he would be knocked up from all the drama.

"S-sure," Soul was the first to find his voice. "Right. Let us go play basketball," he finished mechanically.

"Yes, to the court," Maka said as she nodded after him and slowly dragged her feet in its direction.

"Okay," Chi said eyeing them strangely trying to figure out just what the hell had come over her friends.

The walk, actually more so the shuffle, to the lot the group played basketball at stayed silent and tense. Chima tried to chat with the others and only received one to two word replies consisting of "yeah", "uh huh", and the ever so popular "neat".

She was getting worried.

“All right you jerks," Chi announced as soon as they reached the court, "you all have been acting like bricks since we left my place. Can someone tell me just what the hell is going on?"

"Well . . . the professor . . ." Tsubaki began with a large blush.

"What professor?" Chi cocked her head. "Which one?"

"Professor S-Stein," Maka choked. "What was he doing there at your house?"

"He looked and acted like he was your dad or something," Black Star said bluntly to put it out in the open. "It was weird."

"BLACK STAR!" at least three people yelled.

"What? We're all thinking it," he snapped back in defense. "Quit beating around the damn bush!"

"Is that it? You're all so hung up over the professor being at my house that you're acting like a bunch of idiots?" Chi pieced together.

The group nodded, now embarrassed over their actions. Well, at least the responsible ones, Patty and Black Star really weren't all that fazed.

"Jesus," Chima groaned and rolled her eyes, "you're all so childish! Stein came over this morning to speak to Burnie and stayed for breakfast. He was going to go help out with some things Burnie had to do later so he was just hanging out until I left with you guys for the day. Happy?" she finished explaining, jerking the basketball away from Soul and shooting a three-pointer over their heads to vent some frustration.

"Oh, we just thought . . ." Maka didn't finish.

"I thought Stein and Burnley didn't get along?" Kid asked pointedly.

"I don't know.” Chi shrugged. "They didn't at first but it seems like they're friends now. Good enough friends to stop by early and then chill out with me too. I think Burnie finally warmed up to Professor Stein and they're getting along really well now. Don't tell her I said this but," she leaned in excitedly and lowered her voice to a whisper, "I saw Burnie _laughing_ with him this morning. She smiled and everything!"

Now that was shocking.

"Really?" Soul exclaimed.

"That's amazing!" Liz agreed with wide eyes.

"Yeah that's great and all but can we actually play some ball," Black Star cut in losing interest rapidly.

"Black Star."

"What? That's what we came to do! We can talk while we play!" he snapped back at his partner as he retrieved the ball and spun it on his finger. "Besides, I'm anxious to see how tough Chi really is today."

She narrowed her eyes and grinned at him.

"Oh, I'll show you."

 

}{

 

**Saturday, September 25th**

**1:32 P.M.**

 

After a few hours of intense four on four basketball (Crona sat out to watch) the teams gave in to their exhaustion and spread out on the benches.

"You know," Maka said between gulps from her water bottle, "I just thought of something."

"What?" Soul asked, reaching over and taking a swig from her drink.

"I was just thinking of how good a team Professor Reid and Professor Stein make. "

"Like as partners?" Liz asked, stretching her back.

"Yeah, I guess, or maybe even closer than that . . . ?" she trailed off, blushing.

A solid minute of silence passed for an explosion of realization hit the group.

"Whoa!" Chima shouted and leapt off the bench. "I see it now! Mom and Professor Stein would make a great couple!"

"Really?" Black Star said skeptically. "I don't know. I'm having trouble seeing it."

"You always have trouble seeing it," Soul pointed out.

"Yeah you're pretty dense!" Patty said with laugh.

"Again, sis, no room to talk.” Liz frowned.

"Back to the new topic at hand," Kid steered them in the right direction, "I agree. Stein and Burnley are definitely compatible in more ways than one."

"But Burnie's stubborn," Chi groaned and slumped back into her seat. "It'd take forever for them to get together."

"Unless they had some help?" Soul offered with a sharp ornery grin.

Another dramatic moment of silence as his words settled on the group.

"I like where this is going," Black Star jumped back into the conversation. "So what are you thinking? We pull some strings to hook them up?"

"Actually I was thinking we could make this more interesting."

Soul picked up the basketball at his feet and grabbed a marker out of Maka's bag. The sound of squeaking and scribbling filled the air as the rest of the group looked at him curiously.

“All right!" he suddenly said, brandishing the ball above his head for everyone to see.

Scrawled across the beat up surface in large slick handwriting was:

_**CHIEF MATCHMAKERS OF ETERNAL COOLNESS** _

"So here's the deal," Soul began to explain after everyone got a good long look, "we're going to have a little contest to see who can get the professors together the most effectively. We will divide up into teams and work our magic separately."

"So what do we win?" Black Star crossed his arms and raised an expectant eyebrow.

"The winners get this _beautiful_ trophy," Soul said sarcastically, tossing the ball up and catching it one-handed, "and free drinks at Deathbucks."

A murmur went up through the onlookers.

"And the losers?" Chi asked curiously.

"SHAME," he returned dramatically, "and they have to buy the winners' drinks for a month."

"Sounds reasonable," Kid mused.

"I want that basketball!" Patty growled looking fierce.

"Free drinks would be nice," Crona said sheepishly.

"Chima, are you okay with this?" Maka questioned feeling a bit guilty about the whole thing. "Because we can totally call this off before it gets out of hand."

"Actually I love this," she said with a smile. "I like Professor Stein and I think he'd be a great match for Burnie. I say we go for it!"

"Cool," Soul returned the smile and grabbed some pine needles off the ground as well as some more markers from in Maka's bag, "then it's settled. Let's draw teams."

He colored the ends of the sticks three different colors and then held them in his fist with the bottoms hidden. One by one everybody grabbed a needle and filed into their individual groups.

The Green Team: Black Star, Tsubaki, and Death the Kid.

The Red Team: Chima, Crona, and Liz.

The Blue Team: Soul, Maka, and Patty.

As the others all chatted and exchanged ideas on how to carry out their plans Maka, Soul, and Patty hung back.

"These are good teams, Soul," Maka said quietly. "Do you think we have a chance of winning?"

He chuckled and reached into his pocket, the two girls watching him curiously.

"Don't worry," Soul replied calmly, "even if everything fails we have a trump card."

Out of his pocket he pulled out a crisp white envelop and held it in between two fingers with a smirk. On it was a New York address written in perfect penmanship.

 

}{

 

**Tuesday, September 28th**

**9:15 A.M.**

 

"Professor Stein?"

"What is it, Kid?" Stein inquired, looking up from his dissection table with scalpels in each hand.

"There's something I'd like to ask you. It's urgent. May I speak to you out in the hall?" Kid asked calmly, his gold eyes stern with seriousness.

Stein shrugged and sat his knives down on either side of the endangered critter he'd been about to use as a demonstration for his class.

"Okay, but let's be quick," he said as he turned his screw and slumped down into his chair.

Maka scowled and looked around the class. She knew exactly what was happening. Black Star wasn't in class today and Tsubaki was shaking her head with an exasperated look. Team Green was launching their attack and the weapon clearly wanted no part of it.

"They're starting so early," Maka whispered to Soul as Patty colored in her coloring book nearby.

"True," he returned and nodded, "but with those two I doubt it'll be too effective. You know how they work together, nearly impossible. Remember Excalibur? That was a disaster! It's our luck that those two dorks got grouped together for this."

"Ha ha, they're hopeless!" Patty added as she giggled.

"So what did you want to speak to me about, Kid?" Stein asked as he rolled into the hall and rested his chin on his arms.

"I wanted to know how quick your reflexes were?" he stated, taking a step backward.

"What?"

Just then Stein felt the presence of another soul rapidly approaching. Reading it immediately he knew who it was and waited for the attack. Black Star burst from around the corner and flew into a wild punch. Stein sighed and spun his chair around, countering the crazed assault by simply blocking with his feet. The force of the blow was deviated and Stein pushed away, a bored expression on his lips. He glanced at Black Star as he wheeled away, expecting to see the pained look of defeat etched across his face, and was alarmed to find him smiling.

 _What?_

Just then the wheels beneath Stein skidded onto a slick layer of grease laid there by Kid and Black Star. He flew forward, going at an incredible speed down the hall and began hitting various bummers set up by Team Green that propelled him further through the D.W.M.A.

 

Not that far away.

 

Burnley stood impatiently outside of the West Wing's third hall closet and looked at the clock for the fourth time.

"Where is that boy?"

Kid had asked Burnley to meet him there at 9:15 to discuses an 'urgent matter of utmost importance' and now that he was not there her patience was thinning. Quickly. She tapped her foot and groaned. She felt more irritated by the second.

 _If you ask someone to meet you somewhere it is your job to be timely and punctual. I expected better of Lord Death's son, a grim reaper no less! Oh I'll be having a chatta with his father that's for sure,_ Burnley grumbled inwardly taking a step forward.

Suddenly she felt something slick beneath her shoe and she looked down at the floor. Reaching she ran her finger over the tile and found it greasy to the touch.

_What?_

The sound of rattling, squealing, and rolling filled the air causing Burnley to straighten up. From around the corner Stein came flying on his computer chair with his glasses gleaming and eyebrows arched in surprise. In terror of the unknown Burnley threw her hands out in front of her and turned them into cannons. Out of nowhere Black Star materialized behind her and swung open the door right as Stein hit her with full force. The two of them sprawled into the closet and landed with a loud smack with the door slamming shut.

"Hi, Burnley," Stein greeted into her stomach as he laid collapsed on top of her.

"Stein," she returned less than pleased.

"YAHOO!" Black Star cheered outside as Kid joined him. "I DID IT!"

" _We_ did it," he corrected, locking the door.

"You know that went easier than I thought it would. Soon we will be the winners and those losers will be dragging their feet to praise our glory. Just give those guys the old seven minutes in heaven. This will be a breeze!"

The two students stood there chuckling in their victory, quite pleased with themselves and began bragging about how amazing they were. Which didn't take long.

"Hey, do you smell that?" Kid suddenly asked, growing serious.

“Yeah, kind of like gunpowder," Black Star said as he sniffed the air.

Behind them the knob shot off the door and embedded itself into the adjacent wall. Wood splinters and the shattered remains of a bullet rained down on the dynamic duo of idiots as they stood there in complete horror. They drained of color as the door to the closet creaked open loudly and inside the sound of a screw turning could be heard. Black Star and Kid slowly turned around to see the gleaming glasses and dangerous eyes waiting for them in the dark.

"I hope they didn't win," Chima pouted in the classroom.

"I wouldn't be too worried," Liz said as she sighed.

Suddenly two ear-splitting wails of agony erupted down the halls of the D.W.M.A and reached the ears of the now petrified students in the classroom. The screams cut off as abruptly as they'd started and a deadly chilling silence settled upon the school.

"Nope," Liz rested her chin in her hands, "not too worried about it."

 

The Green Team: **K.O.**

 

**Saturday, October 2nd**

**9:28 A.M.**

 

"Hey, Chi, are you sure you know what you're doing?"

"Relax, Liz. I fixed and took apart bikes all the time on the streets. How different can some pipes be?" Chima said over the banging of metal.

Team Red crowded around the water system of Burnley's house in the basement while Burnley showered upstairs. Only a few days ago the Green Team had executed their plan in the ultimate game of setting up Stein and Burnley and in return also been executed themselves. Tsubaki left flowers beneath Black Star and Kid's feet after the two were hung by their thumbs from the D.W.M.A. tower. But it now was time for the Red Team to make their stand and take while the picking was ripe.

"So, w-what's the plan again?" Crona stuttered as they shivered in the damp air.

It was too cold even for Ragnarok.

Chima stopped banging to give them a brilliant and perfectly sinister smile.

"Excellent question, Crona," she said sweetly. "Using my expert knowledge of drains we are going to turn off the water in the house for an indefinite point of time. Without water this forces Burnie and I to live somewhere else temporarily. That ‘somewhere else' is the conveniently placed address left behind only this past Saturday and is to be posted on the fridge."

From her shirt pocket Chima pulled out a scrap piece of paper with horrible unmistakable handwriting.

"That's Professor Stein's address!" Crona recognized immediately.

"Yerp," Chi chirped. "So the water shuts off, Burnie comes downstairs to find it busted, she's upset, and looks over to see the address. Then she takes me over to Stein's to spend a few days while the water is being fixed! Boom!”

"I have to say, this is a pretty good plan," Liz remarked with an impressed grin.

"Thanks, now let's see . . . " Chi trailed off in concentration.

She tried twisting the pipe's knob several times to undo the water and found it hopeless. In a fit of rage she lashed out and smacked the pipe hard only to have it suddenly explode. The trio cried out and darted towards the stairs, jumping the steps two at a time as water gushed out at an alarming rate.

"You guys get out of here. I'll catch up with you later!" Chi reassured, slamming the basement door behind her.

"Okay," Liz gulped.

"Good luck," Crona offered.

The three nodded and went their separate ways. Chima hurried into the kitchen and once more pulled out the scrap of paper, quickly using a magnet to pin it to the fridge door. Sliding herself up to the bar Chima could hear upstairs the water turning off, cursing, and then angry groaning. Burnley stomped down the steps soaking wet in a towel and with shampoo in her hair, her eyes livid.

"What's wrong with the water?" she growled, an aura of anger flaming around her.

"There's something wrong with the water?" Chima feigned surprise and asked innocently.

In response Burnley just grumbled and headed down the basement to only find it a disaster of bursting pipes.

"The pipes are shot," she groaned, coming back up the stairs and sliding into a chair. "I'll have to call someone to fix it but it looks horrible. I'm afraid it'll take a few days."

"What're we gonna do?" Chima asked, coming to her side. "We need water."

"I don't know . . . We might have to go to a hotel or something."

Burnley let out a deep resigned sigh and covered her face in her hands overwhelmed by the situation.

"I'm sorry, dear," she apologized, not looking up. "Terribly sorry."

Chima frowned. She felt _REALLY_ bad.

_I haven't seen Burnie this depressed in a while. Oh man, what have I done?_

"Do you want something to drink?" Chima tried to redirect the situation in a more progressive direction as part of the plan and to save her own hide.

"Sure," Burnley said with a frown, rubbing her eyes and staring gloomily ahead. "Some juice or som—” She looked up and saw something hanging on the fridge she hadn't noticed before.

Squinting she realized, with dismay, that it was none other than Stein's address.

 _That cheeky bastard must've hung it up before he left and I must not have seen him do so._ Burnley steered her head back to the problem at hand however it kept drifting back to the address. _When I was recovering Chima had to spend so much time in a hotel and hated it. She said it made her feel lonely and homeless again. I don't want to put her back through that once more._ Burnley sighed and stood up. _It seems I'm going to have make some sacrifices._

"Chima, come on," she said sternly, walking over and ripping the address off the fridge. "We're going out."

"Dressed like that?" she said and stared with wide eyes.

“Well, I can't wash the soap out of my hair, now can I?" Burnley grouched as she tightened her slipping towel.

 

}{

 

In his lab Stein continued working on typing up his latest lab report when he heard banging resonating from his front door. He sat back in his chair and turned to face the sound's direction in mild confusion, cigarette burning in the dim light from the computer.

 _No one ever comes to visit. Not even Spirit anymore these days . . . Who could it be?_ he wondered, getting up lazily and trudging towards the entrance.

Opening the door he found a rather shocking and unconventional sight.

Standing on his cement front stoop was Burnley Reid, dripping wet, wearing only apurple towel, well worn flip flops, and a copious amount of bubbles in her hair that Stein suspected to be shampoo. Behind her, rather timidly due to the aura of rage, Chima shuddered with a black, bulging gym bag slung over her shoulder.

"I have need of your shower," Burnley stated firmly, leaving no room for debate or question.

Stein moved and brandished inside.

"Right this way."

 

**Saturday, October 2nd**

**10:14 A.M.**

 

"So what's wrong?"

Stein stood next Burnley in the hallway as Chima sat on the floor in the living room of Stein’s house. Next to him, now clean of soap and in fresh clothes, Burnley sighed and ran a hand through her damp curls.

“The pipes in my home are bursting. Something went wrong and we lost water while I was in the shower. I didn’t have anywhere else to go.” She paused and glanced his way. “Sorry to intrude.”

“It’s no trouble,” Stein said, lighting a fresh cigarette with a match and taking a drag. “I’m just surprised. I didn’t expect you to visit so soon. Especially dressed like that.”

 _She’d certainly surprised me_ , he thought to himself as he remembered how daring she had looked in only a towel and flip flops.

“Believe me I didn’t mean to,” Burnley huffed, crossing her arms and getting irritated.

Then she paused and sighed.

“Sorry,” she apologized. “That was rude. I’m just worried about her.”

Chima laughed to herself as she played with a wind up mouse that had wandered into the living room.

“She hates hotels,” Burnley explained quietly. “We lived in one while I was recovering and she couldn’t stand it. Made her feel sort of homeless again. I don’t want her to feel like that here when this was supposed to be a fresh start.”

Next to her Stein couldn’t help but notice something. Burnley smelled differently now. She smelled like his soap he had, musk and oak that was a gift from Marie, and different from how she usually smelled. Normally it was fresh and fruity, peaches maybe?

 _It must be from her usual soap or shampoo_ , he figured.

“I don’t know what to do,” Burnley said with another soft sigh.

“You could always stay here?” Stein offered, cranking his screw once for good measure.

She looked up at him with a raised eyebrow.

“What?”

“There’s plenty of space and I have two extra bedrooms.”

“You’d really do that?”

“Of course,” he said with a small smile around his cigarette. “We’re friends. Marie and Crona stayed with me for months. They didn’t have any problems. I don’t see why you’d have any either.”

 _And besides_ , he thought, _I’ll be able to keep a closer eye on you. Perhaps even try an experiment with the fusion?_

“Thank you,” Burnley said carefully, a little unsure but relieved she had somewhere to be. “That’s very kind of you.”

“Hey, Burnie, come check this out!” Chima called from the living room.

Burnley frowned and felt a hand touch her shoulder. She looked up to see Stein looking down at her.

“She’ll be fine,” he reassured.

“I know she will,” she said, staring in Chima’s direction. “She can adapt to anything.” She turned and stared up at Stein. “It’ll only be a for a few days, I promise.”

“Take your time,” Stein returned with a shrug. “I won’t mind at all.”

“I’ll pay you back.”

“You don’t need to,” he said, smiling. “I like your company.”

Burnley nodded and then glanced around herself at the walls of his home.

“Your house is interesting,” she pointed out. “Tell me, why the stitches everywhere?”

Stein took one last long drag and dropped the stub of the cigarette to the concrete floor where he snuffed it out with his shoes.

“I had to fix the cracks somehow.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Uh oh! Some certain students are being sneaky and messing with Burnley and Stein! This was a silly chapter but I like it. The kids mean well and just want them to be happy, even if they have ulterior motives . . . Like I said in the beginning notes, I will be back in December with the new chapter but it might be a little late with finals coming up for me. Have a good day!
> 
> }{
> 
> Will the Red Team be victorious? How will Burnley and Chima adjust to living with Stein? And will Burnley's house ever get fixed? Find out next time!


	5. The Makeshift Family of Three - Has the Red Team secured their title?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone! I'm back with the next chapter. Sorry it's a day late but I had my last final yesterday and things were hectic. But the good news is now I'm on break and will be able to get caught up on my writing! I will be back in two weeks like usual with the next chapter (this time hopefully on time) and will see you then. In the meantime enjoy!

**Saturday, October 2nd**

**12:45 P.M.**

 

The rest of the day Stein spent helping Burnley and Chima pack up some of their necessities as well as some personal belongings to bring to his home. Mostly it consisted of clothes, blankets, Burnley’s books, and some other important personal items of both the girls. Burnley, wanting Chima away from any noise because she was a light sleeper, had her daughter set up in the second floor bedroom while she took the main floor one next to Stein’s. She wasn’t comfortable being so close to him but she also wanted to take advantage of the hospitality and kindness Stein was showing her.

After sending Chima to go hang out with her friends so she could finish up getting things around she spoke to Stein about the pipes.

“I think I know someone who could help,” he said, turning his screw. “He’s kind of the maintenance guy for the D.W.M.A. and works with that kind of stuff.”

“You want me to call a janitor?” Burnley returned skeptically with crossed arms.

“He’s not a janitor exactly. He fixes things and knows a lot about mechanical stuff as well as basic home problems. His name is Joe Buttataki. I have his number, hold on.”

Stein went into the other room and, after a few minutes of what Burnley could only assume rummaging by the sound of it, he returned with a grey worn looking address and phone number book. He flipped through the pages and found what he was looking for showing it to Burnley. Hesitantly she called the number and spoke with Stein’s colleague. She was surprised to find him be, other than very hyper, a reasonable and friendly person who agreed to take a look at the damage. He set up a time in about fifteen minutes to meet them at Burnley’s house and asked her to bring him some coffee which she found an odd request.

“So what did he say?” Stein asked from the couch after she hung up.

“He said he’d look and that he’d meet me at my home in fifteen minutes. However, he wants me to bring him coffee. Isn’t that an odd request?”

“For Joe? No,” he said shaking his head. “That sounds about right. Well, we better head over to Deathbucks and grab him something before we meet at your place.”

“What’s wrong with the coffee at my house? I have plenty there.”

“Joe’s particular about his. We better go to Deathbucks and get him his usual just to be safe.”

“Fine.”

 

}{

 

Burnley and Stein arrived at her house to find a tall, buff, and ash blonde man standing next to a truck full of equipment. As they approached he smiled and waved.

“Burnley Reid, right? Did I get the right house?” the man asked in a deep booming voice.

“Aye,” she returned, “that’s me. This is my home. You're Joe, I take it? We spoke on the phone.”

“At your service ma’am. Joe Buttataki, Internal Affairs. You said you had a pipe problem?”

Coming closer Burnley realized Joe was about as tall as Stein which was already quite tall. She felt short for once in her life compared to the two.

“That’s right. Oh and here’s your—”

“Coffee!” Joe suddenly shouted as he spotted the Deathbucks cup in Burnley’s hand. “Thank you! I’ve only had four cups today and was feeling low.” He reached out to take it and then stopped, smelling the air. “This is my usual, right?”

“Yeah, it’s your usual,” Stein spoke up as he lit a cigarette. “I made sure they put in the extra shot.”

“Stein, thank you! I knew I could count on you. How are you?” Joe asked, taking the cup happily and sipping to Burnley’s annoyance.

“Doing fine I guess. Nothing exciting. Just teaching. Burnley and her daughter are going to be staying with me until these pipes are fixed.”

“That’s good to hear. Marie, as usual, says hello and was wondering if you were doing okay. She misses everyone.”

“Must be hard with her back in Oceania.”

“We’re making it work. I’ll be going back there around Christmas but until then Lord Death is having me do last minute fixes up since the battle. Marie is coming to visit though in about a month or two so that will be nice. I know she misses the kids and everyone else.”

“So the pipes, then?” Burnley asked, getting frustrated with all the small talk when she wanted her problem to be fixed.

“Right! Sorry about that, Miss Reid. Stein and I go way back so it’s nice to catch up,” Joe said with a smile.

“We just talked last week,” Stein pointed out. “And I’ve only known you since the academy.”

“Anyway, enough chatter Let’s go take a look!”

They walked up to the porch and Burnley let them in. Then she paused and barred the door from Stein.

“Don’t smoke in my house. You can smoke on the porch but I don’t want Chima’s things getting smoky.”

“Don’t you smoke though?” he asked with a raised eyebrow.

“I don’t smoke around her and not that often. I smoke outside or down the street if I do want to pop out for a fag. Now, get rid of it or finish out here.”

“I’ll be in a second. This won’t take long.”

Burnley shut the door and went inside where Joe was patiently sipping his drink. He was glancing around at his surrounding with appreciative nods.

“Nice home you have here,” he said. “Good bones and pretty solid for its age.”

“Thank you,” Burnley replied, peering out the window at Stein who stood smoking on the porch. “You said you’re going back to Oceania? You work Internal Affairs for the D.W.M.A. there I assume.”

“Yes, ma’am. Lord Death had me come down here during the battle to work on some things and I’ve just stayed here but I am stationed down there. I’ll be returning come Christmas if everything stays smooth sailing here.”

“I see. Well, let me show you the pipes.”

Just as Burnley led him towards the kitchen Stein stepped inside.

“That was fast,” she remarked.

“Seems so,” he said with a shrug.

She frowned.

“Right this way.”

She led the two men into the kitchen and over to the little door that led downstairs to the basement. Down there it was even more of a mess than she remembered. The basement was slowly flooding and pipes lay broken everywhere. She sighed and looked to Joe.

“Well?” she asked.

He stared down at the mess with narrowed eyes.

“Let me go get my boots and turn the water off.”

Stein and her stood on the steps as they waited for him. He returned quickly with huge rubber boots and slipped them on. He waded through the water and with a tool off his belt cranked a few times on a lever until the water stopped flooding out of the pipes. He spent a good ten minutes just looking as Burnley and Stein watched from the steps. Finally, he turned, polished off his coffee, and smiled.

“I can handle this,” he said. “Easy.”

“Really?” Burnley asked. “How? This looks like a disaster!”

“It is but one I can handle. I’m guessing it will take me around five days to repair everything and get the water back running right.”

“Five days?”

“Maybe six. I have to order the parts specialty because this is an old house but it’s do-able.”

“How much is this going to cost?” she asked nervously.

“About . . .” Joe paused and looked up as if counting something invisible. “About ten bags of Deathbucks signature blend coffee beans.”

Burnley stood there in stunned silence.

 _What the devil?_ she wondered in shock.

“Joe,” Stein said in a warning tone.

“Okay fine! Six bags but you’re really twisting my arm here,” he fired back.

“Let me get this straight. You’ll fix my basement and get my water back on for only six bags of eight dollar coffee?” Burnley asked, confusion flooding her face. “Is this a joke?”

Stein stepped in front of Burnley.

“Thanks, Joe. She’ll do it,” he said.

“Now just wait—”

He glanced over his shoulder and gave her a silencing look Burnley had never seen before. She took it as a sign and was quiet.

“Glad to hear it! You can just bring me the coffee each day before I start work or wait till I’m done whatever works. I’ll go ahead and get started here if you want to go do something else. Do you have a spare key I can use to get in so I can work while you’re not here? I promise I won’t steal anything. Oh, and can I use your coffee maker? I’ll bring my own of course.”

“Yes, that’s fine,” she managed. “And let me go grab one.”

 

}{

 

**Saturday, October 2nd**

**1:53 P.M.**

 

Walking home Burnley was in a foul mood. She was cross and depressed, ready to just go home but oh wait . . . she couldn’t.

“Why on earth does he want to be paid in coffee bags? Is everyone in this town mad?” she asked aloud to no one in particular.

Stein took to answering her question as he was the only one around.

“I think it’s a great deal,” he said. “With that much damage, you’re looking at thousands of dollars to repair all that and Joe is doing it for roughly fifty bucks? He’s crazy but you’d be crazier not to see that’s amazing for you.”

“I guess that’s true. He’s a strange fellow that Joe.”

“Yeah, but he gets things done and is fairly smart in most matters so that’s good at least.”

They walked a little more and then Burnley’s mood plummeted even further as she thought about everything.

“This is a nightmare,” she said gloomily.

“It’s not all bad,” Stein returned, glancing down at her. “Chima seems to be excited about staying over.”

“But I’m imposing on thee.”

“I told you that you weren’t. I’m fine.” Stein paused then said, “Are you?”

Burnley stopped walking and sighed.

“Let’s take a break,” she said.

They walked to the school and went up on the roof. Burnley and Stein pulled out their individual cigarettes then Burnley lit them. They stood watching the sun laugh as they smoked, streams of skull smoke rising tentatively into the air. It was warm for October weather and Burnley couldn’t help but feel the sweat stick to the back of her shirt as she stood there. But then again, she couldn’t imagine what Stein was feeling dressed in a lab coat and turtleneck sweater even if it was short sleeved.

“You didn’t answer,” Stein finally said after about a ten-minute silence.

“Answer what?” Burnley asked, taking a drag.

“About whether or not you’re okay. Something is bothering you other than the pipes business.”

She tapped the ash on the stone balcony.

“I’m uncomfortable,” she replied simply.

“By what? My house?”

“No, by you.”

Stein raised an eyebrow at this and turned towards her.

“Me?” he repeated.

“Yes. I’m worried about that bond and I don’t want to scare Chima. I have an episode coming up soon too and I’m worried what will happen.”

“You don’t have to worry,” Stein said, making her glance up at him.

His face was sincere.

“It’ll be fine,” he continued. “I’ll keep Chima safe and we will work through it.”

Suddenly he laughed, making Burnley jump so much she almost dropped her cigarette over the edge of the balcony.

“What’s so funny?” she demanded angrily.

“This is the opposite of what happened to me,” he said in between laughs.

“Explain.”

Stein recounted what had happened during the Battle of Insanity and all that had transpired. He told her about his madness, his insanity, and how his partner Marie had stayed with him as well as basically saved his life. Burnley was quiet as he finished telling her about his relationship with Marie.

“Did you love her?” she asked quietly when he was done.

He dropped his cigarette on the ground and snuffed it out with his boot.

“No,” he admitted, “but she loved me. I saw her as just a close friend.”

“Like Spirit?”

He stopped and stared up at the sky. He tried not to think about Spirit.

“Sure.”

They were quiet and Stein wracked his brain trying to think of something to say.

“Did you know that Joe is Marie’s fiancé?” he asked, it suddenly coming to him.

Burnley glanced up and looked surprised.

“No, really?”

“Yeah, they were dating on and off growing up until they finally got together after the Battle of Insanity.”

“Madness does strange things to people,” was all Burnley had to say as she finished her last drag.

Stein looked at her and a soft smile came to his lips.

“Yes,” he said, “it does.”

 

}{

 

**Saturday, October 2nd**

**4:31 P.M.**

 

They returned to Stein’s house and while he disappeared into some random corner of it Burnley went upstairs to the second floor to spend a large amount of time cleaning Chima’s designated guest room. She fussed and flitted around, trying to make use of the old unused room. She dusted it, scrubbed it, and opened the windows to air it out from the stuffy old chemical smell. After putting on the clean sheets Stein had left earlier and arranging the pillows she tried to decorate with the few things Chima had brought with her. Feeling slightly satisfied Burnley left and returned to the main floor to being preparing her own space.

As she walked down the hall she paused at Stein’s bedroom.

 _It wouldn’t hurt to take a short glance_ , she thought.

Peering in through the door opened a crack she saw a large iron framed bed, a lamp, and a nightstand in the otherwise empty room.

She shivered and shut her eyes, suddenly feeling a spark of madness ignite in her head. She forced it back down and breathed deeply before passing his room to get to the guest bedroom next door.

“Okay, let’s see what needs to be done,” Burnley said to herself quietly as she stepped into the dark room and flipped on the light.

She watched the overhead light flicker on slowly only to find Stein sitting on the floor with her duffle bag open and holding one of her bras in his much too large of hands.

Burnley’s face grew hot, her hand hotter. A dull orange glow started to illuminate the dim room and a distinct whirring sound started to fill the uncomfortable silence.

“Put down my slip and step away from my clothes or I swear to Lord Death I’ll leave with this building burning to the ground.”

Stein looked unimpressed.

“Calm down,” he said, putting her bra down on the duffle bag. “I’m not Spirit. He’d be the one raiding your bags and wearing your undergarments on his head. I was only trying to help you unpack since you were busy upstairs with Chima’s things.”

Surprised, Burnley glanced around the room and noticed it clean. Fresh sheets on the bed, some personal items on a nightstand, and some clothes already folded in the cabinet Stein was sitting in front of.

Her anger faded quickly and her hand returned to normal as it went back from being a Gatling gun.

“Oh,” she remarked. “Thank you.”

Stein went back to his task of folding her clothes, to Burnley’s uneasiness, and she stepped inside fully.

“It smells like a hospital room,” she said as she stood there in the drab grey room. “All chemically and sharp.”

“I sterilized everything,” Stein said on the floor still. “This used to be my old recovery room.”

“And Chima’s?”

“Organ transplant room.”

“Thank God I cleaned it,” Burnley said as she sighed with relief.

“I apologize. It was next on my list but you went up before me so I thought I’d save you some time down here.”

“That’s kind of you.”

She looked around the room further now that the fluorescent light had illuminated everything better. On the side table by the bed was a small picture frame.

It was of her parents.

They stood smiling in the picture outside their house back in Masham.

Burnley couldn’t bear it.

Trying not to draw attention to herself she crossed the room and slid it face down on the table. She never put it on display but always kept it near. She swallowed, batting away at some stray madness that decided to flare up again. She needed more time.

Turning away she noticed that a small bookcase had been placed against the wall on the right side of the room that hadn’t been there before. In it was the books she had brought with her.

“You brought a bookcase in here?” she asked Stein a bit surprised.

He didn’t look up from his folding.

“Yeah, I’ve got a thing about books on the floor. I have to have them on shelves or tables. If not,” he said, putting a stack of clothes in the cabinet, “it bothers me.”

“You know I’m only here a few days, right?” Burnley reminded.

He shrugged, put the last folded stack in the cabinet, closed the door, and stood up. He dropped the empty bag on top of the cabinet and faced her.

“There, done. Want a tour?” he asked.

“I’m afraid so.”

Stein took her around the building going through each floor and showing her the rooms. Burnley listened to him proudly explain what experiments he did in each room quietly, actually interested in knowing some more about Stein himself. They turned the corner on the fourth floor and as they did Burnley spotted something hanging on the wall.

“‘Patchwork Labs’?” she read aloud, stopping to point to it.

“Oh,” Stein said dryly, “I thought I took all those down.”

“Explain.”

“I bought this lab years ago and changed the name to Patchwork Labs.”

“Why Patchwork—” Burnley stopped herself as she thought it through. “Oh never mind. So this was a laboratory?”

“And a hospital,” he added. “I worked for Lord Death for a while as a doctor until I ‘retired’.”

“Pretty early to retire. How old are you again?”

“I’m twenty-nine and well I had some, ahem,” he cleared his throat as he turned his screw once, “ _complications_.”

 _His madness_ , Burnley realized. _It was that bad, huh? His story today he told me about his past during the battle must have been bad but to retire in your twenties? It must have been pretty severe before even the Kishin came into power._

“I just got back into working and started teaching about a year ago,” Stein continued as they started walking again.

“What brought you back?” she asked, genuinely wanting to know.

He smiled an eerie smile that chilled Burnley to the bone.

“Lord Death wanted me to scare a bunch of kids into working harder.”

“And here I thought it was something actually profound,” Burnley returned with a frown. “So how many floors?”

“Five. Six counting the basement.”

“What’s down there?”

“You don’t want to know.”

“Fair enough.”

They turned another corner and Burnley paused by an open door. Inside it was a completely barren room with a large industrial shower you’d see in old schools for gym classes. She noted the steel doors, the deadbolt, and a lack of windows. Room 62D.

“You coming?”

Burnley looked up and saw Stein waiting for her at the end of the hall. He had lit another cigarette and was standing there smoking.

“Aye,” she returned. “Let’s go. I’m getting the shivers up here.”

They went to the top floor where there really wasn’t anything except storage and returned down to the first. Waiting there was Chima was a grin on her face.

“There you guys are!” she said as they entered the living room. “I was wondering where you went.”

“Chima, hello,” Burnley greeted. “When did you get here? Have you been waiting long?”

“No, I just got here. Maka, Soul, and Crona just dropped me off. Where were you two? Doing anything fun?”

 _Maybe they already got together?_ Chima hoped silently.

“I was taking Burnley on a tour of my house,” Stein said with a smile, turning his screw. “We just got done.”

“A tour! Can I go on one too?” she begged with wide eyes. “Please?”

“If Stein wants to you can after dinner,” Burnley cut in as she glanced around the room. “Speaking of which I should get that going. Stein, let me see your fridge. I want to see what you have or if I need to go shopping.”

“We could get takeout?” Chima offered excitedly. “Or we could get pizza like we are at a sleepover? I’ve never had a sleepover before.”

“Pizza doesn’t sound bad,” Stein said with a shrug, glancing at Burnley. “Or, if not, I could cook something.”

“Highly unlikely,” Burnley scoffed at the thought of Franken Stein, the King of Takeaway,  _cooking_. “I guess we can just get pizza tonight and I can go shopping tomorrow for some food to have a decent meal. Stein, you seem to know everywhere to eat in Death City, where should we order from?”

He smiled and walked over to his phone on the table.

“I know just the place. It’s on me.”

“I couldn’t let thee. You’ve already offered us your home. Please, let me pay.”

“No, I insist.”

“But—”

“Just let him, Burnie!” Chima said loudly, cutting her off.

“Oh, all right,” she begrudgingly agreed. “But next time I’m paying.”

“We’ll see,” Steins said and began to dial.

 

}{

 

**Sunday, October 3rd**

**8:45 A.M.**

 

She could smell it as she woke up. Something good was cooking.

Burnley sat up in bed bleary-eyed and looked around at her unfamiliar surroundings. It took her a moment to remember she was at Stein’s in his guest room.

 _What’s that smell?_ she wondered, sniffing the air. _It smells like pancakes. Is Chima cooking ag— NO!_

“SHE’LL BURN THE HOUSE DOWN!” Burnley shouted now wide awake and flying out of bed.

_I remember the last time she cooked she nearly burned down the hotel. Oh no! Poor Stein! He’s going to lose his house! She must have just started because I don’t smell smoke yet. Good, I’m just in time!_

Burnley burst out of the door and ran towards the kitchen.

“CHIMA!” she roared, throwing open the sliding door and running inside. “PUT DOWN THAT—”

Burnley slammed to a stop to see the strangest sight she’d ever seen in her whole life.

Standing at the bar stove was Stein in an apron over his turtleneck and a spatula in his hand. In front of him was a skillet with huge delicious looking pancakes cooking alongside a pan of bacon. Next to them was pancake mix and a plate of already done pancakes with a bottle of syrup waiting. He stared at her, frozen, in mid-flip as she stood there breathing heavily. Behind him, his toaster dinged and two pieces of toast popped out.

“Good morning, Burnley,” he said slowly and carefully before finishing flipping the pancake he was attending to. “How did you sleep?”

“You . . . you . . .”

“You what?”

“You know how to cook?” she asked incredulously, mouth agape.

“Why does everyone assume I don’t know how to cook?” he, in return, asked as he flipped another pancake. “I’ve lived alone for most of my life and Spirit only knew how to make coffee because he got up earlier than me. Besides, cooking is easy. It’s just like chemistry.”

“What’s all the yelling?”

Burnley turned, watching as a sleepy Chima stumbled down the hall and into the kitchen.

“Did something happen?” She rubbed her eyes and stared at Stein as he deposited the pancakes onto the plate next to him. “WHOA! Those are the biggest pancakes I’ve ever seen! How’d ya make them so big?”

“That’s a chef secret,” Stein returned with a smile as he flipped the spatula and caught it sleekly. “Food’s almost done. Go ahead and pour the orange juice.”

“You have orange juice too?” Burnley asked.

“Yeah, I got up early and went shopping. I have to admit I haven’t cooked anything in a while so I didn’t have a lot of food but now I should be pretty stocked up. You can check if you want.”

“I’m still trying to get over the fact you can cook.”

“Is that truly that hard to believe? Marie said the same thing . . .”

“I don’t care if you can juggle too,” Chima said as she walked over and grabbed the juice out of the fridge. “This looks amazing! Almost as good as Burnie’s Saturday breakfasts. I’m starving!”

Burnley, still admittedly in shock, watched as Chima poured orange juice for everyone and Stein finished getting the bacon on a plate. She didn’t know what to think but she sure as hell was surprised.

 _Maybe I miss judged him more than I thought?_ she wondered as she walked over.

“Does it look good?” Stein asked as she came next to him.

“Aye, it actually does. Thank you. You didn’t have to do that.”

“You’re my guests. I insist. Here, have some bacon,” he said and handed her a plate full.

Chima watched as Burnley took the plate and Stein smiled at her. Silently she smiled to herself at the domestic scene and couldn’t wait to rub it into all the other team's faces.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was a good one between Burnley and Stein. I like their dynamic. Plus Joe is fun to write and I look forward to doing some more with him in the future. I really liked writing the short breakfast scene at the end. I always like domestic fluff and getting to write Stein as a cook has always been one of my biggest fantasies. Things are getting spicy am I right? Maybe not . . . Oh well, hope you enjoyed it! Like I said I will be back in two weeks with the next chapter so I will see you then. 
> 
> }{
> 
> Burnley seems to be fighting off her madness pretty strongly, will she be able to keep it up? And why was she so interested in that room in Stein's house? Will Stein be a good help for Burnley's spits since he has fought madness himself for so long? Find out next time!

**Author's Note:**

> Hi! I hope you enjoyed this first chapter. Like I said in the first notes I will update either every two weeks or once a month. 
> 
> I tried to write a Northern Yorkshire accent the best that I could using slang and dialect. If you know how I can improve it or I said or did something wrong please let me know! I want to do my best to create a good and believable character.
> 
> }{
> 
> What is in store for Chima and Burnley's first day at the D.W.M.A.? Find out next time!


End file.
